Hero Gothic 1
by gothicjedi666
Summary: The first of three Fable self inserts I plan to write, assuming I don't do any side stories. Please read and enjoy. Oh and like most my stories, it is for adults only.
1. Chapter 1

Author Note

I'm going to do all three Fable stories as a self insert because I really love the franchise, and I've wanted to write this story for ages. I started a while back and have been typing up chapters for a while. Now the first one is finished.

I had this cool idea that Gothic could reincarnate down his own bloodline so he'll have a body to be born into when the Hero is needed again. He will remember each life, so he will need less training each time as he'll be remembering rather than learning.

The first of these stories will be the shortest and not that interesting as Hero Gothic doesn't know enough abouts what is going on the changes things that much and it doesn't gain his full power till the end, but worth reading as the ending will be unexpected.

Also if you find a few things that don't make sense, you should know that its meant a little confusing and things get explained in the next story when Theresa has gathered all of the facts.

 **Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 1**

 **Oakvale – Albion**

"Come on, wake up!" a voice said.

I'd been dreaming again. Remembering an old life, one that was becoming harder to recall everyday. I'd been here for what felt like years, although I couldn't really tell for sure how long it had been since I had died, but I had passed on that much I knew as the event was firmly fixed in my mind.

Only I hadn't really moved on it was more like I'd started again. I wasn't sure if I'd actually been reborn or if I'd been turned into a child and somehow inserted into this world. It was hard to tell because everyone here talked as if they had known me for years, but I had no long term memories of knowing them.

When I fully returned to reality, assuming that any of this was real, I found my head resting in my hands and that I was sitting on the porch outside the house. I'd never seen this place as my home. Which made it good that I didn't have to stay here in the long run.

Sadly that would only happen when a lot of people here was horrible killed, and what made that even worse was there nothing I could do prevent it. No one here would ever believe a kid if he told them bandits would attack, and I lacked the skills needed to even defend myself never mind anyone else.

"Daydreaming again, were you?" the voice asked "Just like your mother; mind always wandering, well, let wander off and find your sister, will you?".

I hid my wince upon hearing the word 'mother' as she was never around, so I'd never gotten attached. Instead I was being raised, again, by some guy who either was or at least seemed to think he was my father. It was annoying because I'd already grown up once, and I'd done fine without a father the last time so I didn't think I needed one now.

"Sure" I replied "Where is she?"

I assumed that she was where she always was, but since I was making an effort not to get attached to people I tried not to think about such things.

"She's out playing by the Barrow Fields gate" he needlessly told me "Daydreaming as well".

She didn't daydream really, she had visions of some sort that were about what was to come. However while Theresa might be able to see the future, I knew a lot more about what was going to happen than she did.

"Remember, you haven't given her a birthday present yet" my so called father then added.

Hearing that made me realise that today was the day this life would come to an end. I knew I couldn't save anyone as a helpless child, so long ago I'd decided to simply go through the motions so that I'd end up a the Hero's Guild. Then once I'd been trained I'd be able to make a difference and I'd be able to avenge all these people. Assuming I cared too by the time I was an adult.

"Don't tell me you forgot to get her one?" Brom asked me, pointlessly given that he knew I hadn't "Well I'm not bailing you out this time, son".

I gritted my teeth when he called me son, but I'd become something of an expert at hiding my true feelings so he didn't notice.

"Hmm, I tell you what, I'll give you a copper piece for each good deed you do around Oakvale, that should be enough to buy her a present, now get moving and stay out of trouble" Brom told me.

Unlike in the game they didn't just have gold coins here, in fact I'd only seen copper and silver pieces, and that was more than enough in these parts as most people traded rather than paid for things with cash. This family had real money because my 'mother' got lots of coins as rewards for doing quests. Which meant Brom had money to spend on educating his children about morals.

"I will" I said as I headed down the road

Even if there had been something I could say or do to save this village it was too late now. All I could do now was let events play out which meant doing good deeds, so I could earn five coins and buy a crappy box of chocolates for someone who wasn't really my sister.

Soon enough I spotted a little girl looking around for something, she was upset so I would have helped her even without a reward. After all I wasn't bad person.

"Lose something?" I enquired.

It had been a long time since I'd played the first Fable game and while I knew this girl had lost her teddy I didn't know where it was.

"I've lost Rosie! I left her behind and I can't remember where. Her stuffing needs changing today and I can't find her! Please help!" the small child requested of me.

As heroic quests went this was a milk run, but I figured that it was best to start out small.

"Sure, what's she look like?" I asked.

I half expected to see a crudely drawn poster with the words 'Have You Seen My Teddy' pasted on a nearby wall.

"She's a lovely little furry bear with a blue patch on her back"

Well that narrowed it down at least. There weren't that many children in the area and therefore not that many Teddy Bears, so it would just be a matter of checking that her toy hadn't gotten mixed in with some other child's things.

"I will keep an eye out for her" I promised the little girl.

At that point I had to leave as I was having horrible mental images of the child lying dead in a ditch, and for the life of me I couldn't figure out a way to save her life. She wouldn't just go and hide somewhere until the morning, and if I somehow managed to convince her run far away she'd most likely end up being eaten by wolves.

After putting aside such dark thoughts, I saw a larger boy around my age, physically at least, pushing around a small kid. I loathed bullies so I decided to step in.

"What the hell you think you doing?!" I yelled.

It was the kid who was getting bullied who replied.

"Get him off me! Please help! He goes around the town beating up anyone smaller than him but you look strong, I bet you could scare him off for good!" the little boy begged.

Then I realised that I had no idea how to fight. I didn't even know if I could be a Hero, but the worse the bully could do me was give me a bleeding nose and things like that didn't seem so bad when you remembered dying.

I just walked up to the bully and hit him as hard as I could. I'd closed my fist, which meant I hurt my hand, but the kid picking on others was a lot worse off than me.

"I'm sorry! I'll leave him alone, just please don't hit me again!" the boy said as he ran off to find his Mummy.

Hitting him had been really satisfying. I'd been bullied during my first childhood so that had been payback.

"Thank you! You stopped him good! Thank you" the boy said while handing me the teddy bear with the blue patch "I'll let you look after Rosie, she'll be safe with you!"

As I headed back to where the little girl was waiting for me I reached the part of the village where the warehouses were.

"Oh, thank goodness!" a loud voice called out "Listen, lad, could you do me a favour?"

While the sun was no longer high the sky it wasn't going to set just yet so I knew I had time.

"What's the problem?" I asked.

He was just going to request that I guard the place for him while he went for a piss, and that was no big deal.

"I've got to...er, you know, answer a call of nature, stay here and watch this stock for me, there's a good lad, just stand between those two stacks and don't move!" he instructed.

That seemed simply enough

"Right won't be long!" he said while running off.

I stood between the two stacks and looked around. My feet didn't move but my head kept turning so that I would see any trouble coming. Soon enough a small child approached me. The boy had a look of mischief in his eyes I'd seen in it in the mirror once than once.

"Can I help you?" I enquired of the young lad.

I was filled with that sense of importance a kid gets when given adult responsibilities. It was embarrassing how much I was enjoying this.

"My cousin says that the barrel in these warehouses might have stuff in them" the boy informed me "So while he's away, let' smash his barrels up and see what's inside!".

I just shook my head.

"You're too scared" teased the brat "You're just a big blubbering girl!"

Hearing that made me roll my eyes. When it came to name calling this little guy was a total amateur.

"Come on!" urged the kid "Let's go and break some stuff."

It was amazing how not tempted I was to do that.

"Come on!" the child pleaded "There's still time before he gets back!"

Rather than keep my mouth shut, as would have been wise, I responded.

"No thank you" I said.

I could only hope this would be over soon as the kid's voice was already starting to get on my nerves.

"Fine have it your way" the brat remarked as the man who should be guarding the crates came running back.

The job was well done. Not that it mattered as this place would most likely be burned to the ground in a matter of hours. Which had made the whole thing rather meaningless.

"Thanks, lad you've done me a big favour, I'll let your dad know what a splendid watchman you made" he said

I just nodded in reply and walked off. It wasn't long before I spotted the little girl whose Teddy Bear I had recovered.

"Look who I found" I said holding out the bear "Rosie's back!".

I'd always seen Teddy Bears as boys, but this one was a girl the toy even smelled feminine.

"You found Rosie! Thank you so much!" the girl said before heading home "Come on Rosie, let's change your stuffing"

I was just about to go and look for more good deeds when someone got my attention so I went over to talk to the gent.

"Hello" I said.

This was the merchant I'd been planning to come see once I had enough money for the box of chocolates.

"Hello, lad!" the businessperson greeted "I'm a Trader, I wander the world buying and selling wares, especially for fine folk such as your good self. Some little girl I spoke to said that you have a sister and it's her birthday".

In a small village like this everyone knew everything going on because they hadn't invented TV yet, so there was nothing else to do after dark other than talk to each other. Since I was a loner by nature I found it off-putting, but I still listened to what people had to say.

"And it seems you haven't got her a present yet" the trader added "It just so happens that I have a rather nice box of sweets here that are guaranteed to put a smile on any sister face, for only four copper pieces"

Given that a pint of beer cost two copper pieces that meant the candy wasn't that great, but it wasn't as if I was loaded with cash.

"I will have to get back to you on that" I then said.

First of all I needed to find out if I'd done enough to get the needed money out of 'Dad'.

"Maybe later, but hurry, before I eat them myself!" the Trader joked.

I wasn't worried as no merchant with a brain would partake of his own stock as that would cut into his profits. Besides it wouldn't take me that long to get a few coins.

" Yahoo! Come here a second" a woman called before I'd even made a dozen steps towards the house I lived in.

"What is it Mrs?" I polity enquired.

There was no sense not being well mannered.

"Do you know where's that filthy layabout husband of mine is?" the local asked me before supplying her own answer "With some woman, I don't doubt".

Since I'd heard this lecture before I was tempted to zone out, like I had been doing for what seemed like years now, but somehow I found the strength to listen.

"I run his house. I bring up his children, and what do I get in return?" she asked rhetorically "Nothing!"

Unlike in the world I'd been born in divorce was actually rather rare here, and there wasn't even town hall around to register for such a thing, so all this woman could do was complain about her husband.

"If you find him let me know, won't you?" she requested.

That lecture had been a lot shorter than normal so I was willing to agree to anything if it got me away from the woman before she could lay into me about how evil men were.

"I will" I promised.

It wasn't long before I found him as all I had to do was following the sound giggling that came from around the back of a house. When I went to investigate I spotted the terrible husband with another woman.

"Hello" I said

The one good thing about being a kid is that people always assume your dumber than you actually are, or at least a lot more innocent, so they figure that you'll believe their lies, and it was sometimes possible to use that to your advantage.

"What?! I was just...I'm...I've never met this woman before" the cheating man lied "Who is she?"

He could not act at all. Even if I had only been a child I wouldn't have been fooled for a moment.

"Look, sonny. Keep your mouth shut about this, right? My wife's at home with our little ones and I'm supposed to be working" explained the bad husband "but a man should be entitled to do what he like, don't you think?"

Not when you got married, as soon as you exchanged those rings, a man lost his freedom. Which was why I'd never gotten married, and hopefully never would.

"Tell you what, if you keep this little secret, I'll give you a silver piece" the man offered.

That was tempting a whole silver piece could buy a lot of chocolate.

"Okay" was my answer.

I made my facial expression as blank as possible so the asshole would mistakenly think that I didn't understand exactly what was happening here.

"Just don't tell my wife I can't let her find out about this" the bloke instructed as he handed me my money.

"Sure" I said while walking off,

I then returned to the upset wife, but I did so causally in case the cheater looked to see where I was going.

"Hey Mrs. I found him" I informed the woman who surname I had forgotten.

It had hardly taken any time so she could have located him if she had really wanted to do.

"You have?" she asked, seeking more details.

Which I was more than happy to supply.

"He's over there with another woman" I said while pointing at the house her husband was hiding behind "They must be good friends because they hugging a lot and kissing too".

Not for the first time I figured I might end up an evil Hero as screwing with people was kinda fun.

"Right, I'm going to turn him into Balverine food! Thank you, young sir, for telling me" she said before running off

Seconds later I heard.

"WAIT TILL I GET MY HANDS ON THAT MAN!"

While her voice then lowered, it was still loud enough for everyone to hear what she said next.

"I ought to chop it right off! ! My mother was right about you!" we could all now hear.

Now even I was feeling a little sympathy for the guy, but since I had betrayed him I decided to get out of sight. I had more than enough money for the chocolate now, but since I wanted to keep the silver piece I returned 'home' for my hard earned cash.

"Well done lad. Here's your reward for those good deeds" Brom said with a smile while handing me the money I had earn "Well, I think you may have enough there, son.

By now the sun was starting to set so I ran down towards the travelling merchant as fast my skinny legs would allow me

"You're lucky, I've still got these sweets" the Trader said once I had found him "Give me five copper pieces and they're yours"

I couldn't help put haggling when I heard the price increase.

"You said it was four earlier" I pointed out.

I felt I was being ripped off here.

"That was this afternoon when I had a lot more stock" the trader explained to me "Supply and demand young man. I have limited supply and you have demand".

More likely he knew that I was running out of time and had decided to jack up the price as he knew I didn't have time to haggle.

"Fine whatever" I said as I handed over the silver piece and took my change "Just give me the sweets".

I finally got the box that was the object of my quest. Now all I had to do was to take the item to my 'sister' and I was done.

"Young sir, they're yours" the Trader said as I ran off "Wish your sister happy birthday from me now, won't you?"

I then headed outside the village and I approached the fields where my 'sister' was playing under a large oak tree.

"Hello, Gothic" Theresa greeted.

For the life of me I had no why she kept calling me that as it wasn't my name, and she freaked me in other ways that I didn't like to think about.

"I'm sorry if I woke you up last night, it was another one of those dreams" Theresa then said.

She had prophetic dreams as well as visions, they were nothing compared to my knowledge of the future, but she at least talked about what she knew. Not that anyone but me ever listened.

"Really? What was this one about?" I asked.

Already some of her predictions had come to pass so they were worth listening to.

"I was standing in this field when something happened, but I can't remember what" she told me.

Well that wasn't much to go on, and I got the sense that she was purposely not telling me something. Which no doubt meant that she had foreseen the bandit attack.

"That's it?" I asked her "You didn't see this week lotto numbers?".

Not that they had a lottery here.

"Never mind that. I'm still waiting for my present!" Theresa said as her mood changed.

Nothing makes a girl happier than getting free stuff. Which seemed a little shallow to me, but mystic powers or not she was only a child.

"Happy birthday!" I told her while holding the box out "Three guesses as to what it is".

She only needed one.

"I knew you were going to bring me chocolates. It is just like my dream" she said as she took the box.

The sun was now setting and I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I could almost see and hear what was to come.

"Wait! There's something wrong" Theresa then said.

I sighed and tried to think of something I could say or do that would someone make this all better.

"Sorry" I told the Seer "I wish I could have done something".

Before Theresa could say anything about that someone screamed.

"Bandits!" a voice then called out.

I felt my eyes widen in horror as a man dropped dead not meters away from where I was standing.

"It's really happening...they're here! You've got to hide!" Theresa shouted at me

In the background I heard yells that meant more bandits approaching. Which meant that it was time for me to hide and try not to watch as most of the people I knew died. But even as I hid I didn't look away simply because I couldn't.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 2**

 **The Heroes Guild – Albion.**

Maze, the man who had taken me from the burning remains of Oakvale, didn't say much as we walked towards the large front doors. I guessed that he was giving me time to try to process what had just happened, that or he knew that I didn't want to talk about it.

He need not have bothered, my effort to avoid becoming attached to the villagers had paid off at least for the most part as I simply wasn't that upset. Sure I wasn't happy, and I was already plotting revenge, but I hadn't been that emotional scarred by what I had seen. At least not in a way that made me less able to function.

We entered a large room and as soon as the doors closed the Guild Master, approached us. Which didn't leave with much time to admire that place, however I knew that I would be spending many years of my life here so I would have plenty of chances to look around.

"I have a new student for you" Maze told the Guildmaster "Put him in the dorm upstairs, with Whisper".

While I'd play through all this as a game I hadn't thought about how odd it was that I would be sharing a room with a girl for a number of years. I didn't care about girls right now, but I'd grown up once before so I knew that was only a matter of time before I redeveloped an interest in the female half of my species, and she would start to notice that I was a guy. However that was something I had time to ponder over later.

"You don't look like Hero material to me" the man said while leading me up some stairs "But Maze knows what he's doing, I suppose".

I followed the bald man and he showed me a room with many large bookshelves that covered the wall. Aside from the shelves, there was a desk a chair, and last of all there were two beds, that was about it, but I knew it would be enough as I really loved books. Besides there wasn't much else I would want since they didn't have computers and TV in this world.

"You'll be sharing this room with Whisper" the old bloke said "She is one of our brightest young pupils".

Given how late it was she should have been in bed.

"Where is she?" I enquired.

The answer wasn't long in coming.

"She's playing in the woods right now" I was told "You'll meet her in the morning".

It seemed rather late to be out playing in some woods, but it was none of my business so I didn't comment on the matter.

"For now your should get some sleep. Your training starts tomorrow" the Guildmaster said as he walked out of the room.

I laid down on the bed, but I didn't bother to get under the covers or to take more than my boots off. Instead I stared up at the celling and wondered if I was broken inside as a bunch of people I'd know somewhat well had all just been horribly killed, and I didn't seem to be that upset about it. Sure I was sad, but I knew I should be breaking down in tears, but all I did was stare at the celling until I feel asleep.

(Line Break)

The next morning I was awoken by someone poking me. It was a rude, but none the less effective method, of getting my attention.

"It's time to wake up!" a female told me as I got out of bed.

I didn't need to be told who this girl was. She looked a lot like the video game character.

"You must be my room-mate" she said as I stood up and flexed "Hmm. You're shorter than I expected".

I felt the urge to say something in reply but she didn't give me the chance. Which was good because I couldn't think of anything clever to say.

"My name's Whisper. I've been here for months already" the girl informed me "Had the room to myself too. But that's all right".

This time I decided not to talk as I knew she wouldn't listen anyway. She wanted to heard not to engage in conversation.

"It sounded like you had a nightmare" Whisper then added.

I might not have been that attached to the people of Oakvale, but watching a bunch of innocent people die was not a pleasant thing. I imagined I'd have a few nightmares, and really that was good as it meant I did actually care about people at least a little.

"That happens to a lot the first week" the girl was now saying "Some boys don't even last that long. They get homesick and have to leave".

I imagined that this was rather like going to boarding school, so most kids would get homesick. It was different in my case because I had no home to miss and no people to return to.

"You won't last long either if you don't get moving" she then told me.

I was having some trouble fully waking up, but I wasn't worried as I didn't think they'd kick me out.

"The Guildmaster is waiting for us in the Map Room, you don't want to be late on your first day" the girl was now saying

I had the horrible feeling that she was a morning person. Which meant she was the worst kind of room-mate someone could have.

"Follow me!" Whisper then instructed.

She was also the bossy type too it seemed.

"Sure" I said while following her down the stairs.

We soon reached the map room which was where Maze had handed me over to the Guildmaster just last night.

"Hmmm, looks like the Guildmaster got tired of waiting for you he's probably at the training ground, let's go!" Whisper informed me before changing her mind "No wait. I'll give you the tour first".

I had a vague memory of this place from playing the video game, and as my room-mate showed me around the clouded recollections become much clearer. Also I discovered that in real life the Hero's Guild was much larger, and that it was also a fortress of some kind. Which meant it hadn't been built as a school. It was kind of like Hogwarts, only people carried all kinds of weapons rather wands, and not all of them could do magic.

"This is where we hold all our meals" Whisper said as we reached a large dining room "Since you missed out on breakfast you will have to wait till lunch before you can get something to eat".

Since I wasn't a morning person I didn't want to eat anyway yet. My stomach hadn't fully woken up yet. The only thing I desired was coffee, but they didn't have that in Albion.

"I know, it's beautiful isn't it?" my room-mater then remarked as we entered the courtyard.

As gardens went it was well maintain and even as a guy I had to admit that it was appealing to look at. I just didn't say any of that out loud.

"The training grounds are that way come on" Whisper ordered as we crossed a bridge and spotted the Guildmaster near a training circle.

She was defiantly a bossy boots as well as a morning person. These were not good things for me.

"So you finally pried yourself from your pillow I see" the older gentlemen commented upon seeing me.

I couldn't think of anything to say so I just nodded.

"And here I always thought that you farm boys were up at the crack of dawn" Whisper said with a smirk on her face.

I would have liked to pointed out that I'd grown up in a city, and then in my second life in a village so I'd only ever visited farms, but again I never got the chance to say anything, nor did I really have the desire.

"Before we start training we need to think of a new name for you" the Guildmaster told me "It is possible that those bandits might still be after you, so we must cut your ties to the past. At least until your training is complete and you are ready to avenge your people".

Given that I had no real emotional attachment to Oakvale as a place this wasn't a problem. It made leaving that life behind much easier, but avenging them didn't sound like a plan. They had been innocent folks, and the bandits had slaughtered even the children, for that they had to die.

"He'll need a farm-boy name" Whisper decided "Something that fits with his humble beginning and still work when he becomes a hero".

Being a kid meant that my mouth sometimes didn't consult with my brain before making noises. What I said next was due to that.

"You make me sound like Luke Skywalker" I kidded.

It had been a joke, but since no one else knew about Star Wars they didn't get that I'd meant it in jest.

"He's a character from a story" I then "But no would have heard of him around here".

That turned out to be the wrong thing to say.

"Luke Skywalker it is then" the Guildmaster declared.

No one from my world could ever find out about this. I'd never live down the humiliation.

"Fine" I mumbled while looking at Whisper "But if she turns out to be my Mara Jade then I will be so pissed off".

Thankfully nobody heard that.

"Come on then let's see what you can do" Whisper then said as she nudged me towards the training area.

The old man's nod let me know that he also thought it was time to test me.

"All right, lad it's time to see if you've any potential" he said while opening the gate "Get in the ring"

I stepped inside and approached a practice dummy that had targets painted on its chest and face. Although given how small I was it would be better for me to aim for the groin.

"Now then I want you to hit that dummy as hard as you can" my new teacher instructed "Just keep going until I tell you to stop".

I did just that and it had next to no noticeable effect because I was a scrawny little thing.

"Not making much of an impact there, are you?" the old man commented.

Since I'd been living with a child's body for some time now I was use to be being physical weak, but that had been super embarrassing.

"Here try with this" the Guildmaster said while tossing me a stick.

I tested it's weight and durability before smacking the dummy with enough force that after a few whacks I broke the stick.

"Ah, now that's more like it!" the Guildmaster called out "You're going to be using a wooden sword in no time!".

I assumed that this was a good thing.

"Now take this stick and whack the dummy some more" I was then instructed by the old man "Go on give a good hit".

That seemed rather pointless to me, but I did it anyway and while the next stick was more sturdy than the last I soon broke it too.

"Well done, lad. Now then, tomorrow we'll-" he began to say.

That was when we heard an alarm go off.

"What is that?" I asked.

It sounded like we were going to endure an air-raid, but since they hadn't invented aircraft here that was impossible.

"That's the Guild alarm!" my teacher explained "It sounds like there might be something loose in the woods".

I guessed that it was beetles, or possibly rats. Heroes always had to fight vermin near the start of their adventures.

"This is a good opportunity to test your spirit" the Guildmaster was now saying "I'll wait for you at the Guild Wood's entrance while you and Whisper deal with the problem".

Given that this was first day of training that seemed very reckless, but I figured that this whole thing was a set up meant as a test, so it was doubtful that I was in any real danger.

"Once you're done we can talk about starting your real training" the old man said before walking away.

Those words had meant to entice me into doing my best, and it worked.

"Okay I can do this" I said while heading towards the woods.

(Line Break)

"Good work you two" the Guildmaster said once we had left the woods and had returned to training area "Those beetles can be a damn nuisance".

Given that I'd just had to stomp the overgrown bugs my boots were filthy and I stank to high heaven, but I had been successful in my quest and as a bonus I new material for my nightmares. Huge insects always made my skin crawl, even more so when they weren't so fictional.

"Here I think you've earned yourself some pocket money for that, if you want to earn some more coins, I'm sure the servants could use your help" I was told while being handed money "Now take the rest of the day off. We can discuss your training after dinner".

I walked away then and tried to figure out what else I could do. Reading in my room was tempting, but Whisper would be there and she tended to enjoy talking to people like female persons often did. So instead of going to my room I decided then to wander around, and to find out if people needed help with anything. It was good practice for later.

As it turned out didn't take me long to find someone who needed a Hero in training for an important mission.

"Oh I have to make an apple pie for the Guildmaster at the end of the week but I can't find enough cooking apples. I only need another four. If you find enough can you bring them back here? I'll reward you" was the quest I was given by a young woman who worked in the kitchen.

That seemed super important to me even if it wasn't.

"I saw an apple tree in the woods so it won't take long" I told her.

In fact it didn't take me long to grab four apples as they were already falling off the tree and after collecting said apples I carried them all the way back to the young woman.

"Thank you so much. The Guildmaster will get his pie here have this" she said holding out a copper coin.

I was about to walk away when the serving girl leaned down and kissed me on the cheek, and then I really needed to get outside as it had become really warm in there.

"No you're not!" I heard someone shout when I made it outside.

Judging by the white hooded outfits they wore these were apprentices as that was the uniform someone got when they reached that rank. I wouldn't get the outfit for a few years yet, as I was just a novice.

"I am the fastest!" another called out.

Given what they were shouting about I guessed that these young men were Heroes of Skill as while some Heroes could master all three Hero disciplines, which were Strength, Skill and Will, most were only lucky enough to be gifted with one or two of the disciplines. Some only ever truly mastered one even if they a talent for two.

Those who were good with the physical side of things became warriors while those were good at all things stealthy and quick became assassins or rogues. Those who were talent at the art of Will became sorcerers.

Assuming I was the Hero meant to defeat Jack of Blades then I could learn to use all three disciplines, but I couldn't be sure of that yet.

"What's going on?" I asked the older children.

I had time to kill, years worth in fact, so I figured that it was a good idea to get to know people. Perhaps I could even have friends.

"We're discussing whether I'm the fastest apprentice in this Guild" one of the guys with their hoods up explained "I can get to the Demon Door and back in 50 seconds. Beat that!"

I had no idea how fast I was, but this seemed like a good test.

"Okay I will" I said.

They were amused by my words.

"Right then get to the Demon Door and back in 50 seconds or less" another of the apprentices challenged me.

I ran like hell and when I was half way done something odd happened.

"Your path is dark" the Demon Door spoke.

Since I'd know it could talk I ignored it, and turned around as I did have a record to beat.

"Only a light will reveal it. And you are not bright enough" the stone face said as I zipped away.

Seconds later I was back where I had started and as it turned out I'd done the whole thing in just 48 seconds.

"That was amazing!" said one of the apprentices.

It had been. I'd never moved so fast in my life.

"How did you do it?" asked another.

That I did not know, it had taken everything I had to make that time, but given how short my legs were that meant I'd only get faster as I grew up.

"I can't believe I lost my bet" the lead apprentice remarked with sigh as he handed me the money I had won.

Now that the sun was setting I knew that it was time to talk to the Guild Master, if I delayed any longer I might be late for dinner and while the food was pretty basic here it filled me up and I was a growing boy.

(Line Break)

"Tomorrow your real training will begin" the Guildmaster said when I finally found him "You have many hard years of preparation ahead of you. So I have to ask, are you ready to leave your childhood behind and begin your training?"

There was only answer I could give.

"Yes I am Guildmaster" I told him.

(Line Break)

Later that night I took a lamp, but I didn't light it even when I was out in the garden as I didn't want anyone to know, not even Whisper, that I was sneaking about when I should have been asleep in bed. Thankfully I had good night vision and the moon was full so I could see where I was going.

While the full moon meant I had some light to see me it also meant that Balverines might be about as the stories said they were the most active during a full moon.

Not that I worried too much as if the alarms went off for beetles then there was no way that some sort of werewolf would be able to sneak up on me without waking up the entire guild.

"Your path is dark" the Demon Door told me again when as I used the stepping stones to get closer to it.

I already knew what I needed to do, but I had decided to wait for the stone face to finish speaking before I lit the lamp.

"Only a light will reveal it. And you are still not bright enough" the stone face said.

I lit the lamp and that made the door smile. Which was surprisingly not creepy considering that it was face made of stone.

"You figured it out" the thing said, sounding pleased.

Then the face faded away and the door opened, so I walked inside. When I did I spent a second wondering if I'd just been transported back inside the guild as this place looked like part of the library. Only it wasn't because as far as I knew there weren't any treasure chests just standing around inside the guild, and if they had been they would have been locked.

Within the chest was a potion called the Elixir of Life which I knew would make me healthier if I drank it however I decided to wait until I was more grown up before I consumed it. Given that it was a magic potion it seemed wise not to expose my immature body to it's effects.

What got my attention after that was all the books. The shelves were fit to bursting and as far as I could tell not a single tomb was duplicated. There was years worth of reading material here.

Also there was a comfy chair for sitting and reading, but it would have to wait to be used as it was late and I needed to get some rest as I had training first thing in the morning.

But I would come back this would be my sanctuary my hideout. Assuming of course I could keep in private. I would need my own space, of that I was sure, and since no one else had ever bothered to open the door I figured that I would always be alone here.

Plus it could be a good place to bring girls, assuming I ever met any who weren't Whisper, I couldn't imagine ever wanting to bring her here as she was so not my cup of tea. Then again that might change one day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 3**

 **Years Later**

 **Heroes Guild – Albion.**

"Get out of bed, Skywalker!" A familiar voice ordered me "We were supposed to meet the Guildmaster in the training circle half an hour ago!"

After putting up with Whispers nagging for years now I only fantasied about suffocating her will a pillow while she slept about twice a week. Which was a big improvement from when we'd first started being room mates as back then I'd wanted to cut off her air-supply at least twice a day.

"I'm up" I said as I pulled on the white top that made up part of my apprentice robes.

White so wasn't my colour, but I tolerated the uniform because I was dirt poor. Plus the outfit was cleaned and repaired for free. Besides against all odds it kinda worked a little with my look these days.

I'd grown my hair out and now I had a pony tail which was strange for two reasons. The first was that it didn't make me look like a girl and second was that my hair had never grown the right way before now to let me put it into a pony tail in my last life.

"We better get going" Whisper shouted as I fastened the strap of my boots "Race you there!"

I smiled then as while I was still not a morning person I was able to out run her not matter how early she made me wake up. I was just that fast, yet she never gave up trying to beat me in a race.

"You're on!" I said with a smirk.

She had a head start, but I could run like a wild horse so I got to the Guildmaster who waiting at the training ring about three seconds before Whisper did. It wasn't much of a gap, but should we ever trade killing blows then being just a little faster could mean the difference between life and death for me.

"You can forget about that old wooden training sword" the old man said "We'll begin training with real weapons now".

A basic iron longsword was presented to me and I knew I'd get to keep it as it was traditional for an apprentice to keep the first real weapon he trained with. Which was yet another expense, but that didn't matter as my education had been paid for in advance by some unknown party.

I had no idea who that was, but I was grateful for the charity, and when I'd asked about it the Guild Master had told me that he didn't know either as there had been no name with the letters that had come with the money.

That was strange, but at least it meant I wouldn't be in massive amounts of debt once my schooling was done. It was one thing I didn't have to worry about.

"Get used to the weight of the sword" my teacher instructed me.

I did just that and it was lighter than I had expected and not too rusty either considering the fact that it was an old blade. It was however blunt so when it came time for me to leave the guild I'd have to fork out for a real blade. Which wouldn't be cheap.

"Now let's see if you can hit Whisper with it" the Guildmaster said

My room-mate was quick on her feet, she couldn't outrun me, but she damn agile, and she knew how to use a staff, but overall I was just better, and now that I had a real weapon I was going to remind her of that fact.

"Okay" I replied before entering the ring.

My sparring partner was already waiting for me.

"Come on then. Let's see what you've got, shortie" Whisper said while taking out her staff.

Her weapon was clearly magical as it always seemed to appear in her hand whenever she wished it to, and the rest of the time it was no where to be seen. I was rather envious of that.

Also she was still taller than me and had taken to calling me shortie, which most likely meant that she actually liked me as it was along the lines of affectionate teasing rather than real name calling.

Our sparring match was pretty simple, like most of them were. We both attempted to whack each other while at the same time we tried to avoid being whacked. Whisper was better at dodging, but when it came to blocking she just sucked.

"Oh! Sorry Whisper!" I fake apologised when she failed to block yet again.

An oddly perverse side of me enjoyed whacking her. I got the feeling that my kinky side was still within me, and that one day, when I was more adult, it would come out in full.

"It won't even bruise, farm boy" she remarked "You just got lucky".

In her view whenever I won these little matches it was always luck, and whenever she won it was always due to pure talent. She seemed to have her own view of reality, that I simply did not share.

"Alright" I said making another swing "Let's see how lucky I am".

She actually blocked this time but the force of the blow made her hit the ground. I'd started to bulk up in recent months, even if I still wasn't that tall, and it appeared as if I was getting stronger too.

"Maybe you should change your name to Whimper" I joked.

Saying that pissed her off, she got to her feet quickly and she charged at me. I managed to avoid the strike, and then I was able to trip her up.

I really was on good form today so I decided to go for a quick win. I kicked away her pole, knocked her down and ended up pointing the tip of my blunt sword at her neck.

"Okay okay I yield, short stuff" she said.

After helping her up we turned our attention to our trainer.

"Always remember that the life of a Hero is a dangerous one" we were now being told "You must learn to block your enemy's attacks if you expect to live long enough to achieve real fame".

The Guild didn't concern itself with good and evil that much. The point of being a Hero was obtain fame, wealth and power. Those things could gained by helping people, but harming others was also path to celebrity. Which was pretty twisted in my view.

"Now Whisper will try to hit you and you must block her attacks with you sword" the old man was telling me "Not all blows can be blocked, but you should be able to handle anything she can throw at you"

That seemed simple enough and so I got into a defencive stance in order to show my workout partner that I was ready.

"YAH!" Whisper yelled while launching a kick at me.

I dodged the kick and then I had to move again as she swung her pole at me. Soon I was bringing up my sword in order to block her blows, and no matter how fast she was my sword was always where it needed to be in order to protect my body from harm.

"Dammit!" my sparring partner cursed "How did you block so well?"

The answer was that I'd spent months training, and that I was simply better than Whisper. Despite the fact that she had more experience.

"Well done" Guildmaster praised "Now let's see if you can combine both attack and defence"

He would have given more instructions only a very large man approached him, and he drew everyone's attention.

"Hello Thunder" the bald man greeted "Come to check your sister's progress have you?"

Thunder was a massive bloke. He was the kind of guy you could detect coming by feeling the ground shake, yet for all this size there wasn't any fat on him. He was a tower of muscle with some hair on top.

"You could say that" he remarked.

Thunder then looked me over, and I could tell he was not impressed.

"Whisper told me you've got her training with some farm boy" the big man said.

People around here simply couldn't understand that I was no farm boy. I had grown up in towns, cites and then a villages. I didn't even like farms. But for some reason they all seemed to think I was rather rustic.

Part of the reason for this was my cover. I was a farm boy in the Guild's records and I was even using a fake name, but unless the guild was filled with spies there was no reason to treat me like I was some country bumpkin all the time.

"Maze thinks the boy has great potential" the Guildmaster said.

If he did it was news to me. I barely knew who Maze was, the creepy guy spent all this time in his tower.

"Enough to keep up with my Whisper. Bah!" Thunder declared.

Now that he'd said that I had to totally destroy my room-mate as I was filled with a very strong desire to prove myself

"Well why don't we see" the older man proposed.

You didn't need to have played the game in order to know what was coming next.

"Whisper and Skywalker are working on their melee skills right now" the Guildmaster informed the other adult as he turned his attention back to us "Let's watch them".

As his eyes met my mine I got the impression that he wanted me to defeat Whisper so as to prove something. What that was I didn't know, but I speculated that Thunder had trained his little sister before sending her here, so if I, a boy who had been trained solely by the Guildmaster, beat her then that would prove who was the better teacher.

"All right children" my mentor said "Show us who has learnt the most in their training. This will be a no holds barred duel, just like your final combat test. Prepare yourselves."

My room-mate might be taller than me, but she was still a girl so part of me didn't want to hurt her. However as far as I could tell she never minded if I got bruises because of her, so I forced myself to look past her gender.

"Okay then" I muttered.

When I then made eye contact with my sparring partner I could tell that she was going to give this little bout everything she had.

"YAH!" Whisper yelled as she came at me.

She might as well have sat down and drawn me a diagram of her planned attack, as I knew exactly how she was going to attack me. Which meant I was easily able to block each blow with the flat of my blade.

"Not bad, short stuff" Whisper remarked.

Before I could reply she launched herself back with her pole to dodge a possible strike from me. I hadn't actually attempted to hit her, but still it had been smart of her to move away now that her attack had failed.

"You can't beat me farm boy!" Whisper said while preparing to attack me once again "But you can try!"

When I moved towards her she kicked out at me and then swung her pole as I dodged everything she sent my way.

"Do or do not" I told the girl "There is no try".

At times like this other people seemed to move slowly, that combined with the fact that I could move so fast told me that I had the Hero discipline of speed if nothing else.

As for the Hero discipline of strength I might have that too as when I went on the offencive I was able to batter aside her weapon and even land a touch with my blunt blade.

Once I had landed one blow it became much easier to land another as while the attack hadn't really hurt her it did damage her confidence. Plus it didn't help that her brother was watching every move she made.

"You can find a way through his guard!" Thunder yelled at his sister "Attack again!"

His shouting was distracting more than helping her and I used that fact to knock her on the ground. I'd been able to sweep her legs out from under in a single move after she had once more tried to batter her way through my well practised defences.

"That's all wrong Whisper! You need to train more!" Thunder chided as his sister picked herself up off the ground "Such a shame you didn't see me fight in the Arena. You might have learned a thing or two".

The arena was the ultimate test of a Hero's ability to fight. I'd heard plenty of stories about the place, and I knew that one day I'd go there myself. Assuming of course I didn't get myself killed before then.

"You need to keep training if you want to go there yourself one day" Thunder then added.

The large hero then dragged my room-mate off, no doubt so he could lecture her some more.

"Your melee performance it was excellent" the Guildmaster praised "Fight like that in your exam, and you'll do very well".

He was right. I was very skilled with the sword, even if it wasn't a proper blade. If Whisper was a good example of a Hero then I would be one of the best warriors the guild had ever known in a few years from now.

"Thank you" was all I said on the subject.

The old man nodded at me, and I got the sense that he was pleased that I wasn't acting all full of myself.

"Meet me at the archery range when you're ready to continue your lessons" my mentor then instructed "I think it's time for you to show me what you can do with the bow".

I'd used that weapon before but only when facing stationary targets. The archery range was a far more difficult test.

"As you wish, Guildmaster" I said.

I didn't race off the archery range as I needed a few moments to recover from the sparring match. I might be a better fighter than Whisper but taking her on was still exhausting as the girl had a lot of energy.

"Let's continue our training with the bow" the Guildmaster said to me when I caught up with him.

One of the other apprentices handed me a simple wooden Longbow, and I was given a moment to hold it before my teacher spoke again.

"To begin with, see if you can hit the three stationary targets" the old man instructed me.

I'd known how to use a bow long before I'd died and been reborn in this world, and my since joining the guild I'd had plenty of chances to practice, so I had no trouble with the weapon. I drew the bow and began to pull back on the arrow. Then I sent an arrow into the chest of a stationary target. Once that was done I repeated the feat.

"Well done" congratulated the Guildmaster "You hit all the targets"

I didn't think it was that impressive really, but then I reminded myself that I was still a child, so it was easy to gain praise.

"Unfortunately most foes don't stand still, so let's see how you fare against moving targets" my teacher then said.

On the range the dummies begin to move back and forth. I began to fire at each one. I took my time with each shot so I didn't miss, and as I grew more confident it took less time for me to hit a target.

"Excellent shooting my lad" the Guildmaster told me "At this rate you'll score very well during your final tests".

Those final tests were still a couple of years away so I still had plenty of time to improve. I assumed my mentor was taking that into account when reviewing my performance.

"Thank you, sir" I replied.

I attempted to return the bow to the apprentice who was looking after the range, but he gestured for me to keep it so I slung the bow and the quiver over my shoulder. My sword rest at my hip so I had room for them.

"Next will be learning more about the ways of the Will" my instructor informed me "Come find me by the waterfalls when your ready".

I couldn't leave right away as I needed to recover my arrows. Not all of them could be reused, and I knew which ones could thanks to my earlier eduction. I even knew how to make arrows. I'd spent hours in the workshop learning to produce the projectiles by the dozen while using materials gathered from the woods just outside the Guild.

After recovering my arrows I headed over to the waterfalls for the next part of today's training.

"It's time for me to see how you are progressing in the Hero discipline of Will" my teacher was now saying "We'll begin by striking these straw dummies with Shock"

I knew that all Heroes had a power inside that allowed us to perform super human feats. But it wasn't purely an internal thing, the power could be called upon to do what many would consider to be magic. But they weren't spells like a witch could perform, it was something different.

"All right, let's see what you've got" said the Guildmaster

I used the shock spell, which was an attack of pure energy that leaped from the fingertips of the Hero, to strike a target. My lightening was pretty basic, but I knew that with practice I would achieve a higher levels of control with the spell. Then I would able to deal much more damage and I would even be able strike more than one foe at a time.

Also I would learn new spells, but not like a wizard would out of books and such, as my magic was a matter of will, like the name suggested.

One day I would be able to manipulate reality as I wished with my awesome power. Shooting fireballs and lightening was just the beginning. One day I might slow the passage of time, summon the spirits of the dead, and even teleport from place to place just by wanting to do it.

"Let's see how much damage you can do in half a minute" I was then told.

After the thirty seconds were up the two dummies were on fire, and one had sort of exploded, but not in a dramatic way.

"Excellent use of magic, well done" the Guildmaster praised "You have learnt the basics of all three Hero disciplines. With time and a lot more practice you will master them".

My mentor than let me lose. There was no reason for him to test me more today as I still had a year or two before my final test, and the Guildmaster knew that it wasn't a good idea to push a student too far as we each had progress out our pace.

However I wasn't done for the day. I still had plenty of energy, so I looked around for something else to do.

"This melee combat against Whisper counts towards your final grade. Do you wish to be graded?" another instructor asked me when I wandered past the duelling circle.

My room-mate had returned from her older brother's lecture and she looked ready to train harder than she ever had before. I wanted to help with that.

"Sure" I said.

Also being graded would let me know how well I was doing compared to other students. Currently there were no apprentices in my age group, other than Whisper, but my grade could be compared to past students.

"Right let's get Whisper and you in the ring, same rules as before" the teacher said " and I have a special prise for you if you manage an A+".

I jumped into the ring and drew my sword.

"You asked for this, short stuff" Whisper said while drawing her weapon.

I wondered then if her desire to prove herself worthy of her older sibling would one day led her down a dark path. She certainly seemed more eager to batter me around, and that led to me desperately defending myself as her pole seemed to want to bash in my skull.

Thankfully for me her anger was actually counter-productive. She was telegraphing her moves more than ever so it became a simple matter of waiting until she wore herself out before making my move. This took a while as she had a lot of energy.

When she started to get tired I knocked her staff out of her hand, and then I was able to jab her in the stomach hard enough to make her double over in pain. I winced upon seeing that, however than didn't stop me from hitting her again on the head with the flat of my blade.

"You're dead" I said.

She gave me a look that promised future pay back as she rubbed her head.

"Alright you can stop now. That was very impressive" the instructor said "You got an A+ and that grade means I can award you a new weapon!"

With that he handed me a kantana. This weapon was not blunt and it was new. With this blade I could kill someone, so I decided to store it my room and keep the practice sword at my side.

Once that was done, and I was back outside, I headed off the archery range for some more practice. It turned out that I was on a role today as I beat my last score easily.

"You got an A+" the archery instructor told me once my time was up "I've got a better bow for you"

I swapped my rather basic bow for the better one and tested it out. It was a superior weapon that was sure.

Then I considered going to find out how good I was at Will, but by now I was actually getting tired and hungry. So I headed to mess hall for some dinner. Whisper was there and judging by the fact that she sat with me she wasn't mad at me anymore.

"Come on, let's go into the woods" Whisper said before I could finish eating my yummy food.

I had no idea why she wanted to go there, but since I knew she went there a lot I figured that she might have something to show me. Hopefully it wasn't a dead animal.

"Okay" I said as we raced off into the woods.

(Line Break)

 **Guild Woods – Albion.**

As it turned out Whisper had nothing to show me, instead she wanted to make out. Which came as a surprise as I had just beaten her in two sparring matches today. But women of any age were a puzzle no man could ever figure out.

To make it more strange I'd not found her at all attractive until night now. The moment she started kissing me I'd seen her in a whole light despite having known her for years. It had to be hormones.

The kissing went really well and she'd even put my hand on her breasts, which made up for her pinning me to a tree. I was just about to start playing with her tits, when someone shouted. That noise was soon followed by more men yelling.

"It's coming from over there" Whisper said as we looked across a pond to see three rough looking gents.

They were all armed and dangerous looking, and given that they hadn't set off any alarms their presence here greatly worried me as either they had figured out how to disable the air-raid siren or they knew ways around it.

"Bandits!" Whisper almost shouted .

Thankfully the crooks hadn't heard her.

"We need to warn someone" I then said.

My sparring partner had other ideas.

"Why don't you use your bow" my room-mate suggested.

Right now I was rather shocked, and not just because she was suggesting that I kill people, but because we'd gone from making out to planning to starting a skirmish in very little time.

"I'll heal you if you get hurt" Whisper then offered.

Like her brother she had a talent for Will as well, but unlike her famous sibling she didn't use it for offence. Whisper had a talent for stealth, agility and healing magic. I didn't know why that could be, but considering the fact that I could get hurt soon I was grateful for it.

"Come on you can take them" my fellow apprentice urged.

Moving slowly and quietly I took out my bow. I knew that since the bandits hadn't seen us that I would get one free shot. After the first bad guy went down the others would run for cover. With this in mind I stilled my breathing and let the arrow fly.

A man died and I took no note of that as I was already aiming my next shot, and I killed again as a bandit took cover in way that didn't prohibit me from shooting him.

Then the last fellow then died as he tried to fire his crossbow at me. He took too long to aim his crossbow. My arrow went right into his neck and he dropped to the ground.

"We did it!" Whisper shouted in joy "Did you see the look on their faces?"

I'd just killed three people, and she was happy about it. I found that rather sick, but I said nothing.

"Wait till the Guildmaster hears about this!" Whisper called out.

I had the horrible feeling that I was going to be rewarded for taking human lives. That didn't sit well with me as where I came from ending people was not something to be celebrated.

"Okay let's go back" I said.

I was no longer in the mood to make out. In fact I was feeling a strong urge to take a bath. I felt somewhat soiled by what I had done.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 4**

 **Two Years Later**

 **Heroes Guild – Albion.**

Today was the day. Years of work had gone into readying me for this test, and I felt prepared.

"Before you graduate, there is one final test you must complete. Enter the Guild Wood and the test will be revealed to you there" the Guildmaster told me "Good luck, my boy".

The final test had come a little sooner than I had expected, but I felt confident none the less I'd trained every day and my hard work had paid off. I could fight well with a sword, I could shoot a bow, and with my magic I could reduce a practice dummy to ashes.

However learning to do all of that, and many other things that weren't important right now, had just been preparation, and none of it would mean anything if I didn't take what I'd learned and put it to good use.

"Yes, sir" I said as I walked past him and into the woods were Maze would be waiting.

At first I thought I was alone there was no other living thing around me, aside from the trees. In fact I was completely alone I couldn't hear any birds and from my classes I knew this was a bad thing. It meant something dangerous was close by.

"I suppose you are wondering how you pass the final test then?" Maze said to me.

His sudden appearance nearly made me jump out of my skin, yet I was able to keep my cool, barely.

"Sure" I replied.

Assuming this was just like the game then I already knew how to pass the final test. However that didn't mean it would easy, and it might be exactly it was in the game.

"It's simple really" the older Hero explained "All you have to do is survive, and follow my commands".

That did indeed sound simple, at least in theory. Truthfully this would be the greatest challenge I'd faced in either of my lives.

"We'll begin with your sword" I was informed "Hit me, if you can".

I drew my katana, which was razor sharp unlike the sword I had trained with, and I swiped at the older man. Using this style of sword was very different that using a western sword but I'd had plenty of time to practice with both two-sided and one-sided blades over the last year. However while my attack was a good one, a magical shield blocked the blade.

"Break down the barrier" the tester instructed me.

I did just that I swung the sword hard enough that the magical shield collapsed and the older Hero was forced to defend himself with his own sword, that he had made appear out of thin air. By the looks of it the weapon was made out magic not metal.

Then Maze cast a spell which cased the ghosts of beetles to emerge from the ground, and they swarmed towards me. There seemed to be hundreds of the purple things and none of them looked friendly.

"Defend yourself anyway you can" was the next instruction.

I'd had a lot of experience in this sort of thing as the big bugs were a consent menace to the fruit grown here in the woods, so I was able to stomp the overgrown insects, and since I had learned to throw fireballs I was also able to use them to burn the tiny pests.

"That was a little too easy" Maze commented "I think its time to give you a real challenge".

Then the far more experienced Hero brought forth the spirits of the men I had killed in these very woods less than two years ago. Only these weren't mere ghosts. The wisps Maze had called upon animated the bodies that been buried here so long ago.

Acting quickly I stabbed my sword into the ground and then I brought my hands close together. A small fireball formed and it grew in size as the palms of hands slowly moved away from each other. I was feeding energy into the fireball and it because of that kept growing in size until it was as big as a basketball.

Then I sent the magical attack at the largest of the three Hollowmen, only it wasn't that effective. The magically assault only cause the dead thing to stumble, and that worried me as it should of blow the walking skeleton into pieces. Maze had to protecting his minions somehow.

Thankfully I had time to think about what to do about that as the Hollowmen needed to cross the stream, and like other forms of undead moving through or even just over, running water was a chore. I'd go as far as to say that the experience was painful for them, only that wasn't quite right as they couldn't feel pain.

Also the fact that they were knee deep in water gave me the chance to try something I'd always imagined could be rather effective. I channelled lightening and sent it not at the walking corpses, but at the water. It had a devastating effect just as I'd hoped it would. Whatever had protected the Hollow Men from direct attack hadn't shielded them from an indirect assault.

"That was very well done" praised my examiner "I knew you could handle an extra challenge".

Since I knew the test wasn't over I didn't relax.

"Now shoot me with your bow" Maze said just before teleporting away "Don't get too close!"

Seconds after notching an arrow I found my target and began firing at Maze, however I did not him harm as once more he brought his shield and every so often he teleported again. Still my shots didn't miss per say, and that was good because he was testing my accuracy.

Then Maze seemed to blur as he moved, he caught every arrow I sent his way as he showed off his mastery of the Slow Time Spell.

"Excellent and finally, cast Shock at me!" Maze ordered.

After putting my bow away I did just that and to my amazement my tester caught the lightening in his hand and somehow neutralised the attack.

"Keep going" he ordered

I raised my other arm and cast the shock spell with it too, and Maze somehow drew both bolts of lightening into his outstretched hand. He was able to keep going longer than I could keep attacking, so in the end I nearly collapsed from all the the effort.

"That's enough!" Maze commanded before lowering his voice "Yes quite impressive, for a novice"

I'd stopped being a novice years ago, when I'd been promoted to apprentice, but after seeing what this Hero could do with just the power of Will I understood just how far I still had to go.

"You'll find real battles rather more fatal than this, but you have passed your final test, and you are ready to receive your Guild Seal from the Guildmaster" Maze said before suddenly teleporting away.

He'd left in an awful hurry, however I wasn't offended as I knew Whisper was also being tested today, assuming that hadn't already happened, and I knew that he had a role play to play in the graduation ceremony. Which meant he other tasks to perform.

"I so need to learn that spell" I said to myself as I started to walk back to the guild proper.

Being able to teleport about would save a lot of time.

(Line Break)

Hero's Guild – Albion.

"I remember the first night you came to us and look at you now" the Guildmaster said upon my return "Maze's faith in you was well placed".

For my part I accepted the praise without comment.

"Now come along" my mentor ordered "The graduation ceremony will take place I the Chamber of Fate, the oldest part of the Guild".

I followed him down some stairs, and into a dark chamber that was beneath the guild. I'd never been down here before so I was unused to the sheer aura of history and power this place seemed to have.

"Let the apprentices approach" the Guildmaster commanded.

Whisper and I made our way towards the centre of the room, and even though it was dark down here I could see Maze and Thunder standing behind the Guildmaster, they both looked very proud.

"For years now you have worked hard to earn yourselves the title of Hero. Today your apprenticeships come to an end and you go out into the world to do great deeds" our mentor said "Deeds that will bring you the gratitude of thousands or even strike fear into their hearts".

Sometimes I got the impression that being good or evil was simply a life style choice to Heroes. That made me wonder what kind of afterlife people got here, and if there was a Hell for those Heroes who abused their powers.

"These are dark times the shadows of Albion are stirring" the Guildmaster then said "Your choices, whether they lead you down the path of good or evil, will change the fate of the world. Now take your Guild Seals, and venture forth as Heroes!"

The other Heroes all clapped their hands as we were handed and our seals, and that made us officially Heroes. I was now free to leave when ever I wished. The world was mine to explore.

Yet all I wanted right now was a drink.

(Line Break)

Hero Guild – Albion

After the post graduation party, and the after party drinking games, I was a little unsure of my myself as I walked up the steps to my room. The stone walls, stairs and towering bookcases were all very familiar to me as this had been my home for years, but for reasons of their own my legs seemed to have forgotten where my bed could be found.

Despite my limbs betraying me I was very happy. My formal training was complete, and while there was always more to learn I had demonstrated my control of the three Hero disciplines. Which was more than many other graduates could say.

As an added bonus my mysterious benefactor had sent me some decent starting equipment so I was going to start off my Hero career in style. My new armour was black leather with some silver buckles, it was bulky and heavy but I'd get use to it and more importantly it didn't make me look like a gimp. Which was nice.

Aside from that I'd gotten my hands on a steel sword that had a flame augmentation in it. Also I'd been given a lovely jewelled dagger that had to worth a quite a bit of gold, and I suspected it somehow enchanted.

It was all very generous, and it more than enough to start with, but I still wondered where it all had come from. Nobody knew as the boxes had just been labelled with my name, the fake one, and while there had been a letter to the Guildmaster I'd not been allow to see it.

When I finally found my room, having gotten turned around, I discovered that Whisper, who was still both my closest friend and greatest rival, was already lying her bed and she hadn't bothered to undress so I suspected she was waiting for me.

Over the years we'd competed for everything. The highest grade, to see who was the fastest runner, the better warrior and we'd even found out who could eat the most cake, that had been her.

In my view she grown into an exotic beauty, who was very much unlike the other young woman in and around the guild. Her figure was graceful and more importantly her breasts were a nice handful that I'd gotten to play with more than a few times over the last couple of years. Her ass, which I'd cared about even more was nice and pert, and her legs were long and shapely.

"Going to stare at me all day, farm boy?" she said while turning to look at me "Paint a picture, it'll last longer."

I could do that now as the guild taught more than fighting. We'd been encouraged to develop our other talents. In my last life I'd not been musical or artistic, but in this life I was both. Not that I thought it important, my skill with the sword, bows and spells were what mattered.

"Maybe one day I will" I replied "I could be a famous artist".

Truthfully my artwork was nothing special, but today I felt like I could go and out conquer the world if I'd really wanted to so painting a picture would be no big deal.

"You should enjoy being the best while you can" Whisper said "Because once we're out of here, I won't be holding back on you anymore, Skywalker"

I was going to have to think of a Hero game before I went on my first quest. Skywalker was a fine name for an adventurer, but I couldn't take it seriously as I knew where it came from.

"You won't get to call me that again" I told my soon to be former room-mate "I'm going to change it".

For a while now I'd been thinking about Theresa, my sort of sister, who was off living with some bandits. I would soon see her again, and I'd even dreamt about it. She'd called me Gothic, and for some reason I felt the need to take that as my hero name.

"Would you prefer 'Chicken Chaser' then?" Whisper teased "You have the right to that title".

One of the odd things they did at the guild was that once a year they let all the chickens out of the coop and the novices, which had just been Whisper and I, had been expected to chase them. I'd caught and brought more of the birds back to the coop than Whisper had so I had earned the coveted title of 'Chicken Chaser' much to my later regret.

"I hate that title" I muttered.

She found that amusing as well.

"Townsfolk and farmers have names" she said "But you're going to be a Hero, and so am I. Heroes don't have normal names. I'm Whisper and you're Farm Boy, at least for now".

Rather than reply I just started to undress and for once my room-mate sat and watched. Which was strange and while we'd fooled around she'd never shown that much interest in seeing my body.

"You know this is our last night sharing a room" Whisper remarked as she got up walked over to me "We might not see each other again. At least not for a while".

She was right about. We'd have our own rooms should we never return to live at the Guild, but that wasn't a concern right now.

"I know" I replied.

Before I knew what was happening my hands rose to slide around her waist and then they were slipping down to give her pert ass a gentle squeeze. Then I was not so gentle when touched her, but she didn't seem to mind. She was hardly a delicate flower.

"Trousers off, farm boy, and sit on the bed" Whisper commanded.

With a smirk on my face I stepped back and began unbuckling the simple leather belt that kept my trousers up. Once the item of clothing was off I sat down on the bed as she had wanted me to, the sight made her grin.

"You do want these, don't you?" she asked me while touching her own breasts "Well I want to see you your chest too"

Normally I liked to be the one telling the woman what to, but I knew that Whisper was too stubborn to let me take over, and since this could be last chance I'd get to shag her I was happy to let her direct things, at least for now. So I took off my shirt.

She then did the same, she undid her apprentice tunic and she lifted it up while also turning away from me. I'd seen her breasts before, but that was only when she was undressing for bed or when she'd let me play with them in the woods. She never let me just look at them, but I knew that tonight would be an exception.

When she done Whisper turned around again, her arms and hands over her chest, covering her breasts so I was denied the view. She was going to let me see, but not just yet she wanted to see how eager I was.

"Poor farm boy" she teased before moving her arms "You're still so easy to mess with".

After letting me get an eye full she knelt beside the bed, and her hands moved to the bulge in my undergarments. She got my dick out within seconds which told me she eager too.

Then she started to give that part of me a rub. This was hardly the first time that Whisper had jerked me off, but until now she'd never gotten on her knees to do it. And I had a feeling she was going to do more this time.

I was right her lips parted and her tongue snaked out to curl around the tip of my cock. She did this a few times before giving my balls a quick and gentle squeeze.

"Unnh" I heard myself say.

Then she ran her tongue down the underside of my cock, from the tip to the base. Up and down, up and down her tongue went while licking the shaft. She seemed to be experimenting, trying to find out what would get a reaction from me.

When she got a good moan her lips parted and opened wide, her head came down, and Whisper's wet, warm mouth was now engulfing at least half of my manhood. She must have gotten some tips about this, or she practised on someone else as she rather skilled with her mouth.

She then pushed herself down further, taking more of my hardness into her mouth. Once she'd gotten used to the sensation she started sucking, lightly at first but also firmly the gentle suction was pleasing. Then she tried to take all my cock in her mouth, but that proved to much.

"Too big, can't get it all down…" she told me with a cough.

I hoped that she hadn't gone off giving a guy oral sex as that would be a crime to men everywhere.

"Are you all right?" I asked.

My concern seemed to amuse her more than anything else.

"You don't fool me, farm boy" she said "You just want me to stop now so you can get to the best part".

Given that she still had a hand at the base of my cock I was not going to disagree with her.

"No take your time" I said.

Rather than reply she started to jerk me off some more. She'd done that a lot since we started fooling around as she hadn't wanted to go further. I'd not been too bothered by that as all my training tired me out a lot and I knew not to try to force that sort of thing as we couldn't exactly not see each other should we fall out.

Without warning her mouth got to work again, she started to suck as much of my cock as she could take in, and her head started bobbing up and down. As for her hands, they were kept busy by massaging my balls. There were no words from me; only moaning, grunting, and some kind of gasping sounds. She sucked harder when I made noise as if she wanted to encourage me.

Only when I got close to climaxing did I speak and she totally ignored me when I spoke. But she was prepared she was already making swallowing noises when I ejaculated into her mouth.

I fell back onto the bed and even now I could feel Whisper's tongue licking me clean as if she wanted every drop of my cum inside her.

"The serving girls were right" she then said "Men really do like it when you swallow it all".

Well that explained how she'd known what to do. No doubt the female staff had given her all the details on how to make a guy happy.

"You know, if you're not tired, I could…return the favour" I offered.

That wasn't my thing either, but it would have been rude not to offer.

"Get some rest farm boy" she instructed "I want you inside me before you leave the Guild and your too drunk to go again".

I wasn't actually drunk to that degree, but she had a point so I laid down.

(Line Break)

I must have fallen asleep as when I woke up her arms were looped around my neck and my head was her chest. I didn't remember lying down like this. I didn't even remember her getting into bed with me.

"Are you awake?" Whisper then asked me.

Rather than say anything I kissed one of her nipples and then started sucking on it. As I did I felt her fingers run through hair my as she pressed my face into her tits. Since she wanted it I suckled greedily at her tit, while using a hand to play with the other breast.

"When I-ahh, after I become the Arena Champion, ohhh, you'll make a nice addition to my harem, farm boy" Whisper then said.

That stopped me because I had to laugh.

"A harem?" I asked "Do Heroes have harems?"

I'd never heard of that, but it wouldn't surprise me.

"Yeah if they get famous enough" she replied before making me a promise "If I make arena champion before you I'll let you been in mine"

I couldn't resist responding to that.

"But if I become arena champion first then you can be in mine" I offered.

We really did compete too much.

"Deal, Skywalker" she swore.

I knew that she would indeed join my harem if I beat her that way, but for now I wasn't going to worry about that sort of thing. Instead I laid back down on the bed, and then moved my head to her other breast. My mouth met her nipple and started sucking hungrily.

She cooed softly slide her fingers through my dark hair. Clearly she enjoyed this as much as I was and so when she made me stop I was rather surprised. I wasn't disappointed for long however as she had only made me cease so she could get fully undressed.

"Feast your eyes, short stuff" she said once she was naked

Her pussy was shaven, there was not a single black hair to be seen, and her slit glistening with wetness. Which meant that she had both planned and prepared for this night.

"Like what you see?" she asked me "Any man would"

We only had candle light, but that was more than enough for me.

"They would" I agreed.

Now her attitude had changed she seemed nervous, which was very much unlike her.

"Come on" she urged "be a man and take what you want"

When I moved to do just that she got her confidence back and one of her hands grabbed my dick and guided me inside her. Then I thrust forward and entered her fully.

"Fucking hell, farm boy, so…so big!" she called out.

I let her get used to me before starting to pound in and out of her hot, tight hole over and over and over again.

"That's it! Fuck me good, Skywalker!" she pretty much ordered of me "Yes! Harder!"

Upon hearing that I began really pounding my cock into her cunt, and she loved every second of it. I just kept going, ramming into her as hard as I could and it had to be a Hero power for her to take such a fucking without any signs of discomfort.

"Ahh! Yes, yes, farm boy" she shouted as she orgasmed.

I was still going at this point as I wasn't that close to my climax. So I know knew that all that nipple sucking must have really warmed her up.

"Your turn now" Whisper instructed "Cum for me!"

I decided to make her regret being so bossy. I continued to pound into her, faster and faster, only rather than tell me to slow down or even act as if it hurt she seemed to be enjoying herself. So I decided to do the sane thing and let myself cum.

Which I soon did. I shot my load right inside her as she held on to me very tightly. She didn't let go until I started getting soft inside her.

"Good job, farm boy." she said as she slid out from under me "Lie down. I'm going to go clean up."

This time I didn't mind that she was telling me what to do. I just laid there and waited until she got back into bed and then she shoved my head back into her chest. Her tits were soft so they made good pillows, despite not being that big and I soon went back to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 5**

 **Heroes Guild. Albion**

I woke up with a massive hangover that I immediately cured by drinking some more for breakfast. Amazingly that worked, and when my head cleared up I remembered that I was now a fully qualified Hero.

Also I recalled that I'd had sex with Whisper, and by the looks of things she was long gone. I wondered then if we'd destroyed our friendship, but given that we might end up rivals in the near future I figured that our estrangement might be for the best.

Once my liquid meal was done with I went up to what was no longer my bedroom in order to collect my stuff. As to why this room was no longer mine and Whispers, that was because as full Heroes we got private chambers, ones we had to pay rent for.

I hadn't decided where I would be living yet. Not many Heroes actually lived at the guild, unless they were teachers, many rented room at inns when they needed to, and the more wealthy ones owned properties that were scattered all over the land. However since I was poor I'd most likely end up sleeping outdoors, at least until I got some gold together.

When I had my leather armour on and all my weapons were secured on my person I went to the map room, and picked the first quest card I could find. The map was actually a powerful magical device that let the guild know when people were willing to hire a Hero. It even told us what the reward would be, somehow.

The quest card I'd picked up was nothing special. Giant wasp attack at the picnic area just outside Bowerstone, which was a town not far from the Guild. It wasn't even more than a few minutes walk from here as long as I took the right path. Which I knew since I'd been to the picnic area before.

I then looked around and I realised that I was in fact free to come and go as I pleased. I'd been out of the guild before, but never alone as apprentices weren't allowed to go off by themselves.

Now things were different. Should I so desire it I could walk out the double wooden doors and never be seen again. If I wished to it was even possible for me to get on ship and sail far away. I might not have enough money to by passage on a sea going vessel, but I was young and strong so many captains would be willing to take me on as crew.

However I no real desire to travel so far this soon from graduation. While I didn't exactly have real friends here I did have people who would support me, and the guild was still open to me should I need to use its library or just to get a hot meal.

Another thing I took note of was that while I was still welcome here, no one seemed to care if I left and never came back. My graduation had been celebrated last night, but come morning it was old news and no one had even said goodbye.

After letting all that sink in I headed off to the guild shop and brought enough supplies to last me a few days. Not just food, but also some potions. It was then I remembered that I still had that elixir of life stashed in my back pack so soon as my shopping was done I chugged that down.

I felt a little different after that, more energised and somehow more alive if such a thing was possible. I now wanted to get out there and face the world, so that was exactly what I did.

However rather than simply race off to the picnic area. I went to find the guy who sold titles. Well actually his service was that he would go around and inform everyone of the title, and then tell them what a great Hero I was.

Since I hadn't actually done anything worthy of note as of yet I didn't feel right paying him for that but, I badly wanted to change my name to Gothic, it felt right somehow and it was worth doling out some coins so that no one would call me 'Chicken Chaser' ever again.

(Line Break)

 **Picnic Area. Albion**

The first sign of trouble that I saw was two men who were running right at me. Only they weren't the threat, the real danger was the nasty thing chasing them. It was pretty much a giant wasp.

"What is it with fantasy worlds and overgrown bugs" I muttered to myself.

If it wasn't huge beetles, it was massive bees, or giant scorpions, and worse of all groups of giant spiders. Which made no sense as spiders were solitary creatures by nature, they didn't form packs like wolves did.

"Ah, help us!" one of the blokes called out.

A casual swing of my flame embed steel blade dispatched the wasp without issue.

"You're welcome" I said to the men I'd saved

They didn't stick around to say thank you, they just kept running. Not that I blamed them as if I'd been lacking in super powers I'd already be a spot on the horizon.

As expected the picnic area was swarming with more huge wasps, and I knew they weren't going to be so easy to deal with. Judging by the looks of things they'd already killed a few people, or at least stung them into comas, as there were bodies lying about.

I started by setting a few of them alight with my fireball spell. With so many wasps around, aiming wasn't even issue until, and all the smoke seemed to confuse them. However it didn't do anything to me because of the way the wind was blowing, so I just blasted them some more.

Once the smoke had cleared those that survived came after me, but there weren't exactly a lot of them, and I was quick on my feet so my sword ended their lives before they could sting me.

Then the big Momma Wasp showed up. Queen or not, she was still just a big bug, and so it really wasn't too hard to deal with her. I shot the big bug full lightening then when the thing was busy having some sort of fit on the ground I stabbed her, and, then stomped on it until the big wasp finally stopped moving.

Once that was done I realised what a big mess I'd made of myself and I was so glad that leather was easy to clean. However before I could do anything about that the people who had been driven from this area all returned and started cheering at me.

It was a very odd feeling to say the least. It was like being a celebrity, only I'd actually done something worth praising.

"Maze is looking for you" the Guildmaster's voice then sounded in my ear.

I'd forgotten that the guild seal could be used for telepathic communication. Now I'd been reminded in a really, really unsettling way. I did not like people talking into my head.

"Errr, can you hear me?" I asked my old mentor.

He said nothing back so I assumed that either he'd broken the connection or that I needed to be holding the seal in order to talk back. Not that I tested that out as it wouldn't take that long just to walk back to the guild and ask about this in person.

Which was exactly what I did.

(Line Break)

 **Bowerstone. Albion**

I'd learned a bit about Bowerstone from other Heroes that had passed through the Guild in my novice days. I'd even visited the place as part of group in days past, and I had already decided I wasn't going to stick to the rules. Not if I had anything to say about it, at least, but I doubted that my views on the matter would be taken into account.

The guards on the gate stopped me, of course. I was clearly armed my flame sword was hard to miss.

"You've never come into Bowerstone before, have you?" one asked me.

The idea of offering a bribe crossed my mind, but it seemed risky given that I didn't know enough about either of them men in front of me to tell if they were the kind to take a payoff. And I was hardly flush with cash even after doing a quest.

"I'm about to change that" was my reply

That perhaps hadn't been the best thing to say. If I'd been more polite they might have made an exception for me.

"We have some rules around here" the other guard then told me "That you need to know about before we can let you in".

It seemed as if I wouldn't be allow to keep my weapons after all, but that wasn't the huge concern it might seem to be. They couldn't take my power of Will away and I had been trained to fight in hand to hand combat. Still being unarmed outside of the Guild was unsettling.

"I'm listening" I said.

In fact I already knew about the rules, as I had in fact been here before, but back then I'd been a kid and I hadn't brought any weapons with me as adults seem to dislike children having sharp metal objects.

"Bowerstone is a peaceful town" I was then informed "Which means I will have to confiscate your weapons. They will be locked away in the barracks and you can reclaim them when you are ready to leave".

I handed over my weapons, but not happily.

"There are shops, inns, lots of different people to met" one of the guards then told me "So why not pay the tavern a visit. You can't miss it".

I wondered if they were on commission or something. It sounded as if they got paid to mention the local watering hole.

"Oh and keep an eye open for Lady Grey" I was then warned "Treat her with respect. She is the Mayor after all".

According to everything I'd heard Lady Grey was not someone to be trifled with. I planned to avoid her if possible.

"Enjoy your stay in Bowerstone" one of the guards said as he handed me a piece of paper "And here is your receipt. Don't loss it".

I'd been given a piece of paper that had my weapons listened on it and it also had my new Hero name written below the list.

"Thanks" I said before heading side.

I barely got a chance to look around before someone tried to get my attention.

"Over here!" Maze shouted.

He was standing in front of the pub, he looked more causal than I ever seen him. Not in terms of dress, but in posture. I figured this was because he didn't see me as kid anymore, this was a meeting of two Heroes out in the real world.

"Good afternoon" I said

That was when I noticed how many of the smaller locals were looking at me. My response to this was to wave at the children.

"Been enjoying all the attention, have you?" Maze asked me as he crossed arms "I remember what is was like".

The children were soon herded off back into the schoolhouse, so I was able to focus my attention on the Will using Hero.

"I guess everyone heard what happen at the Picnic Area" was what I said in reply "I didn't think news would travel this fast".

For a short time I had forgotten that gossip could sometimes move faster than light, despite whatever Albert Einstein had to say on the matter.

"Yes, I've heard about your encounter with the Wasp Queen" Maze told me "Most of Bowerstone is talking about it. But you shouldn't let your pride get the better of you".

I still found the whole thing too strange to worry about it effecting my behaviour enough to make me arrogant, but I would keep his words in mind for the future.

"Anyway, that's not why I summoned you here" Maze said now changing the subject "You see there are dark forces gathering that will put your giant insect to shame".

By that I assumed he meant Jack of Blades. I remembered enough of the game to know who the real threat was.

"Tell me, how much do you recall about that night I took you to the Guild?" Maze requested of me "In your mind was there anything strange about the raid on Oakvale?"

I thought for a moment before answering, and it seemed odd to me that he was asking about this now. The village had been attacked years ago, and my memories of that day had faded over time.

"Not much" I said to Maze "My sister told me to hide in some bushes so most of what I saw were dead bodies lying on the ground and lots of feet as people running about. There was some screaming as well and something caught fire, that's about it".

That much at least was crystal clear in my mind. I'd had nightmares about it for months despite my efforts not to get attached to the people there.

"At the time I'd thought those bandits had killed your whole family" Maze was now saying "And that if given the chance you'd be next".

Which was why the Guildmaster had wanted me to change my name, and had told everyone that I'd been found on a remote farm.

"But it seems there may have been another survivor" Maze then informed me "A member of your family".

I knew exactly who it was, but I couldn't say that as there was no way that I should have known.

"Really? Who?" I asked, while trying to feign surprise.

The answer wasn't long in coming.

"Your sister" Maze told me.

I did my best to act shocked.

"Theresa, she alive!" I said.

Maze seemed to accept my reaction as being genuine, which was as it should be as even the smartest of people tended to see what they expected to see rather than what was actually going on. Even I acted that way, although I did try to see things in different ways.

"I'm afraid it's only a rumour, and there's no way to be certain yet but I thought you should know" he said "When I learn more I'll let you know".

I nodded my head rather than saying anything. I wasn't a great actor so the less I spoke the better.

"Oh one more thing, it seems that someone left you a house" Maze said before disappearing in blue light.

Now that bit of news did shock me.

(Line Break)

 **Bowerstone. Albion.**

I examined my new property, and then went about fixing it up as according to the guard I'd spoke to, the house had been brought for me well over a year ago. I could only assume it was my mysterious benefactor, somebody out there had gone out of their way to make things more pleasant for me, and I had no idea who it could be.

Theories I had in plenty. It could be Jack of Blade simply being crazy. It could be Theresa even. It could even be that one day I'd learn to use Will to travel in backwards in time, and that future me was using that power to help present me. Which seemed unlikely as I knew that history was not something a person should mess about with.

As I thought about what else could be behind this I tided up. The house had been empty for a year so there was dust and cobwebs everywhere and a bird had left a nest in the chimney. So the furniture in each room got shifted around a bit, and I swept up. Then I stopped as that was all the improvements I could make to this place with paying for anything.

"So, you own this place do you farm boy?" Whisper asked me.

She'd sneaked up on me so silently I'd almost jumped into the air. I'd forgotten that she was trained in stealth.

"Yes" I answered "It was left for me".

Not even the guards had a name for whoever had brought it for me. Lady Grey might know more, but my gut was telling me to avoid her.

"Two rooms?" she then enquired.

I could see where this was going.

"Do you want to move in, Whisper?" I asked back "I'd of thought you'd be sick of the sight of me by now"

We'd shared a room for years and she'd driven me to the point of insanity a few times, and I must have driven her up the wall at least a little.

"Don't get your hopes up Skywalker" the young woman said "I'm not thinking marriage I want a place to live, and you've got room".

By that I assumed she meant that this wasn't going to develop into any sort of romantic relationship. Which was fine by me as I might have to kill her one day. Still I really wouldn't mind shagging her more, I had conflicting feelings about her to say the least.

"Besides we'll both be off doing quests so we won't see each other that much" she pointed out.

That made sense so I decided that she could rent the room. If nothing else it meant I wouldn't end up living with a stranger.

"Long as you pay then you can stay" I told Whisper "And it's Gothic now. Remember that"

I then handed her the spare key.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure you get something for your trouble" she assured me as she walked upstairs "I still need to get you trained up for my harem after all".

I'd just sat down when Whisper shouted something.

"You can start by heating up some water!" she said "I need a bath".

I knew had to nip this in the bud right now. Gothic the Hero was no ones servant. But I also didn't want to argue about it so I just got up and walked out the front door. There was a tavern nearby and the drinking age was only fourteen here so I was more than old enough to go for a pint.

(Line Break)

I staggered back home a few hours later, and I wasn't in a great mood as while the local ladies had been impressed by my slaying of huge killer bugs, none of them had wanted to go to bed with me. Apparently there weren't many single women around, and those that weren't already married wanted husbands who could support them.

However I had enjoyed the drinking games, and the singing. I had introduced a few new songs, and I currently had one of them stuck in my head.

When I got upstairs I opened the door to the larger of the two bedrooms, and began to get undressed.

"Wrong room, farm boy" a voice told me.

Whisper had decided to take the bigger bed for herself. I found this annoying.

"Oh for fuck's sake" I moaned.

Whisper got up out of bed, and while it was dark, there was enough moonlight to let me see that she was only wearing a night shirt.

"You're drunk" she stated "Again".

Well I'd been celebrating my success, and I may have said something along those lines, but I wasn't sure if any words actually left my mouth.

"You're lucky I still think you're cute" she then said "You can sleep with me tonight, but no sex".

I must have made a sad expression because her firm face softened a little.

"Fine, I'll give you a quick rub, but no kissing I don't want to smell your breath" she was now saying "and I'm not doing any house work if you're going to be wandering into my room late at night wanting me to make you happy".

That seemed like a fair deal to me. Afterall I could always pay one of the locals to clean the house for me. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 6**

 **Orchard Farm. Albion**

So far I was having a very productive day. I'd figured out how to use my Seal to transport myself back to the Guild whenever I wished. Which if nothing else was really going to cut down on how much time I spent slogging around the countryside.

Upon returning to the Guild I'd quickly picked up my next quest card. Which was to protect Orchard Farm from some bandits. The job was paying very well, and I did need to increase my level of fame so I'd taken the card, and then I'd hit the road once again.

Walking to the farm hadn't taken very long and it had been relaxing since I hadn't run into much trouble. There had been a couple of big wasps, but without their queen they had no one to organise or breed more of them so it had been a simple matter to end their existences. Plus it gave me a chance to get in some target practice.

Also along the way I'd met a dog. The furry little canine had come up to me and had planted a scroll at my feet. Opening it had gotten my hands covered in dog slobber, but the real issue had been what was written inside. The dog, who I had named Oggy after a childhood pet, was mine. He even had a collar on that informed people of this.

This had left me even more confused than before about my benefactor because it was one thing to be given a house and some starting equipment, it was quite another to be given a living creature. Of course Oggy couldn't tell me who or what had sent him because he couldn't speak English and I couldn't speak Woof.

Had I had been sent anything other than a dog I would have tried to send the animal away, but domesticated canines were extremely loyal to their humans. Oggy wasn't going to betray me sometime in the future, and I'd figured that some day down the road he might provide me a clue as to who or what was trying to help me.

"Oh, you must be the Hero" the farmer said when he spotted me

The man wore mostly green and he had red hair under his cap. He also had a long, thick beard and bright eyes that suggested he was normally a far more cheerful person than he was right now. Last of all the worried expression on his face told me that he feared for his life.

"I've arranged for some backup to help you out, but there are so many bandits that they'll tear my farm apart!" the man was now saying "I wish we had never found those stones. They've brought us nothing but trouble!"

Had I been given a chance I would have asked about the stones, but that was when I saw two guards heading my way. One was short and one was tall, at least when compared to me.

"I'll go inside and look after my wife" the owner of the farm said to me, and my guard comrades "Thank you, and good luck".

Now I felt a little overwhelmed as this was all happening rather fast. I didn't really understand what was going on.

"Greetings, Gothic the Hero" one of the guards greeted me warmly.

Given that I was still new to the job I was rather surprised that either of these men even knew what I was, never mind the name I had chosen.

"How do you know my name?" I asked.

Both of the guards smiled warmly at me.

"Oh, we've heard about your encounter with the Wasp Queen" the taller of the two guards told me "News travels fast in these parts"

I figured that there couldn't be to many guys in black leather and metal armour running around Albion, or if there were then I never seen them. Not that I'd looked.

"We'll have time to chat later" the shorter guard then said "We need to decided who will protect the barn, and who will handle the bandits. They aren't far behind us".

I thought on the matter for just a moment.

"Let me met them when they charge" I decided "If any of them get past me they will head straight for the barn, and you'll be waiting for them".

That might seem risky, but my teachers had often told me that crooks who preyed upon smaller settlements and farms weren't very brave, or organised. They would be use to people running away from them, and they were unlikely to have any archers, so if I ran at them they'd get scared. Plus I could throw fireballs around, that always unsettled people.

"Oggy stay at my side" I ordered the dog

I decided that I would use my bow to start with as I would need to thin their ranks. If I didn't then they might just swarm me with their superior numbers, and even I could only block so many swords.

When I heard shouting I ran towards the large group of bandits who were intent on pillaging the farm, but only enough to put some distance between myself and my allies. I wanted the bad guys to focus on me, not on the two non-superpowered people in the barn so it was important that I was visible.

I readied my bow and I aimed at the nearest crook. I quickly pulled back the bowstring, and released the deadly arrow, which plunged deep into the chest of the closest bandit. He screamed and fell to the ground, gravely wounded but not yet dead.

His friends stopped for a moment, as if they couldn't quite accept what had just happened and I used the time that brought me to ready another arrow.

"No matter what happens, stay behind me" I ordered the two guards.

If they got in front of me I might kill them by accident. I had enough blood on my hands already I didn't want to add any more than I had too.

When I took another life the remaining bandits came to understand that if they didn't get close then they would all die, so they charged me.

I slung my bow over my shoulder and then I raised my palms. I didn't really think it would work quite so well, so I was surprised when the jagged bolt of electricity jumped from bandit to bandit. I'd just used Chain Lightening an advanced Will ability, but I managed to stay focused long enough to finish off the remains of the gang.

When I was done I could barely remain standing. Heroes had certain amount of mana they could use before it needed to be recharged, and there was only so much energy even our bodies could handle before we became fatigued.

"You really showed them a thing or two" one of the guards shouted.

In the background there was a battle cry and I turned around to see another group of thugs heading my way. I was too taxed to use more Will and I didn't have even have the seconds required to use my bow, so I withdrew my sword and attacked. With my hound beside me we battled the bandits that dared to attack this helpless farm.

Thankfully while bad guys were somewhat unorganised, also they wore no proper armour and in the second group not that many of them even had swords. One of the guys had even come at me with a pitchfork.

By the end of it I had saved the farm from almost certain doom, and no one on my team had even been badly hurt. The guards would have bruises I guessed, and I would be sore later on, but other than we were golden.

That was when the shorter of the two guards fell to his knees. He was only knocked out I figured as he'd been hit over the head with a staff rather than a more deadly weapon, but it wouldn't have been totally painless.

The other guard panicked, as he couldn't see this attacker, and he tried to get out of the barn. Only he didn't get far because a female figure dropped down from the roof and kicked him so the man ended up going face first into an empty barrel.

"Whisper" I said in a calm voice.

It was her. No one else could have sneaked past me and gotten onto the roof. At least no one I knew.

"Didn't expect to see me here, did you?" she asked me.

Actually I had forgotten about this part, but to be fair it had been many, many years since I'd played the video game. Memories of it tended to return as I played them out in this real world.

"I noticed you took up this quest" Whisper then said causally, while getting ready to fight me "So I decided to take up the opposing quest Lady Grey had set up".

It was odd that Lady Grey, who was the person who ruled Bowerstone, a good sized city, had offered a Hero a sum of gold in exchange for attacking this place. Albion had no king, or real government for that matter as it was just a collection of settlements, but there were still nobles ruling over places and they were suppose to protect the people who lived on their lands not harm them. Which meant this was all about the stones in the barn. There was something important about them, they were worth spilling blood over.

"You could have killed those two" I said while gesturing to the two disabled guardsmen.

She didn't seem to care about that. Although my dog was bothered judging by his growling.

"Killing doesn't seem to bother you" she pointed out.

That stopped me in my tracks because she was right. I disliked killing, but I wasn't the one using non-lethal methods. Mostly that wasn't a matter of choice. I'd not been trained to disable people rather I'd been taught to kill them. I did know how to fight with my hands and feet, but in a fight involving swords that just wasn't an option for me.

Clearly there was a gap in my eduction. I'd have to do something about it. Like learn how to use Will to knock people out without harming them. Some sort of sleeping gas would be handy.

"Let's make this interesting, farm boy" Whisper now saying "After I beat you and get those stones, you are going to go home and draw me a bath so I can relax once I have my reward".

Because of the lack of pipes and water heaters, having a hot bath involved a lot of work. I'd have to get enough water from the well, heat it, then I'd have to fill the tub. It would be a pain in the ass.

"You will wash my back, towel me dry and bring me my robe" she went on to say "Then, you will massage my feet and any other body part I want you to touch".

Well that last part didn't sound too horrible.

"What if I win?" I enquired.

Whisper thought about it for a moment.

"Then I'll cook you dinner" she decided "We can have sex either way".

Albion was a very sexually liberated country. They had gay marriage, and it was actually possible for me to have more than one wife as long as they lived in different settlements. Not that I wanted a wife, but it was nice to know that I could marry whoever was willing to hook with me. However women here didn't just sleep with men as part of a bet so Whisper's offer was still a bit odd.

"Unless your too tired" my rival then added "Maybe you don't have the stamina after that skirmish".

Her implications annoyed me. I was Hero I could fight a few bandits, beat up a girl, and then still have the energy to shag her. Which was not totally a good thing.

"Okay" I said with a sigh "We'll fight".

Whisper back-flipped on the roof of the barn. Which proved that while I might be able to run faster than she could, she was much more agile than me. However that didn't mean I couldn't follow her as there was waggon at rest next to barn, so with a little effort and some acrobatics of my own, I made up up to the roof of the small building.

"Catch me if you can" the female Hero teased as she somersaulted off the roof "Come on shortie!".

She wasn't that much taller than me these days, and I could still have one last growth spurt so soon that could change, but for now I she was taller than me, and way more agile. Which meant I was having trouble keeping with her as she jumped about.

Thankfully she decided that she wanted to fight rather than leap about and she came at me with her magical staff. I was slightly slower than normal since I was wearing armour, but I was also better protected so when she did manage to hit me the blow didn't hurt that much.

"Ha!" she shouted out.

As it was my armour would need repairing because of my last fight, and the way things were going I might end up with a few extra bruises on top of the ones I already had. Hopefully my body would toughen up.

"You're going down, Skywalker" Whisper then declared.

That name annoyed me.

"My name is Gothic" I said between gritted teeth.

The flame augmented weapon that I carried blocked Whisper's staff as it did I realised that while I was tired, bruised and I smelling bad, I was also getting very really pissed off.

Channelling my rage, rather than let in control me, I went on the offencive, and I barrelled through my foe's defences as I had many times before during training. Soon Whisper was on the ground and she giving up.

"Damn it" she complained "You've beaten me again"

I held my sword point to her throat.

"Oh good you yield" I said while moving the blade away from her neck "So what do we do now?".

Whisper got up and smiled at me.

"Now I give you a bath" she said "You could do with a good soak".

Without warning she pushed me, and I lost my footing before failing back into a stream that we'd come across while fighting each other. I splashed about for a while, and when I was able to drag myself out of the water I found that Whisper was long gone.

(Line Break)

 **House. Bowerstone**

After dinner, which Whisper had cooked for me, I headed up to the second floor and found the door to the largest bedroom had been left open. My fellow Hero was lying on her bed, looking up at the celling, she wasn't naked, she was just in her night shirt. Which was currently not covering up as much as it normally did. I could see her thigh, and some of her butt.

"Uh, what?" I asked.

I was sure she'd just said something. I just had no idea what was it had been.

"Oh I was just remembering the days when all I had to do make you happy was give you a rub and let you feel my tits" she said.

Things were now more complex between us, and I'd beaten her at the farm, and that was hard for her to accept. She'd honoured the deal and made me dinner, so she wasn't a sore loser but losing to me had made her somewhat sullen. At least until now.

"Hold it right there, farm boy. Don't you think you're a little overdressed?" she said "Strip. All the way, then you can come into my bed"

Sometimes it was best to humour her.

"Yes, ma'am" I replied with a smirk.

It didn't take me long to undress as I'd only just gotten out of the bath, and once I was naked I could help but notice how much Whisper was enjoying the view.

"From the way you're staring I guess you like what you see" I said.

She nodded.

"I thought you would" I then added.

My next action was sit on the bed next to Whisper and lift up her night shirt.

"Not so fast, Hero" she told me "I need a little attention before you go having your way with me".

I pressed my lips to her collarbone before moving higher, kissing the base of her neck and nipping lightly where her neck and shoulder joined. Whisper moaned, and started running her hands through my still wet hair.

"Oh, that's it" she praised "Mm, how'd you get so good at this?"

I couldn't tell her the truth, so I lied and told her it was from our petting sessions. Which would have been true had I needed any lessons, but she had coached me a little so it seemed plausible.

"You're a good student," she cooed.

Next I kissed her lips while one of my hands rubbed and fondled her breasts.

"You really like them, don't you?".

They weren't big, but they were the only pair I had any access to since I had not yet gotten to know any other women. I would have to expand my horizons soon.

"I really do," I answered before going back to playing.

She took of her only piece of clothing, and then pressed my face into her tits

"Ahh! Yes," she hissed.

The hand in my hair tightened its grip as I suckled greedily at her tits. Normally I was more of an ass man, but Whisper wouldn't let me spank her so I just mauled her breasts as much as I could with my hands and mouth.

She whispered something to me softly as I suckled on her teats, and despite only having done this a few times she already knew I liked it when she played with my hair.

Sadly it didn't last forever and she made me stop so that she could stand up in front of me.

"Feast your eyes, Gothic" she said as just stood there.

She had shaven the first time we'd had sex and had again so it was pleasant view. She'd never done that while we'd still been at the guild.

Thinking about those days made me want to take her right now. No more foreplay, no more teasing, I was going to sheath my cock in that pretty cunt of hers and fuck her brains out.

I pushed her down onto the bed, got into the right position, thrusted forward and entered her; her tight, wet walls stretching and parting to accommodate my cock.

"Fucking hell, farm boy, so…so big!" she called out "Hot and hard and filling me up!"

I drew myself back and then plunged into her again, making her gasp. Then I was pounding in and out of her hot, tight hole over and over and over again.

"That's it! Fuck me good, farm boy!" she shouted "Ahh! Yes! Harder! Harder. Gothic!".

I grabbed her hips and kept up the pace, pounding my cock into her soaking wet cunt

"Yes! yes, that's what I want!" she screamed "Fucking pound me, farm boy, fuck me until I can't walk straight!"

When I moved back at bit so I looked at her breasts. She grabbed her tits, then she started pinching and pulling on her nipples as I watched.

Then I got going again and grunted as I pumped in and out, ruthlessly, roughly, over and over.

"More, just a little more, don't you stop," she pleaded "More, more and I'll-I'll-"

She didn't scream or say anything, but I felt the shudder pass through her body, and what really tipped me off was her nails digging into my back.

"Your turn now" she said, somehow able to talk "I want you spray it all over me!"

She pushed just enough to let me know that I needed to get off and then rubbed my dick until my baby batter was ready to come out. Most of it ended up on her stomach, and some ended up a bit higher.

However I didn't look at her for long as I had to lie down. As Hero I had plenty of stamina but I had been very active all day so I wanted a rest.

"Good job, farm boy" Whisper praised as she used her fingers to taste my cum "Now I'm off for a wash. Stay here I'll let you sleep with your head on my tits. I know you like that".

It was true that I did, hopefully she'd hurry back to bed before I fell asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hero Gothic I**

 **Part 7**

 **Orchard Farm – Albion**

A few days later Whisper and I were back at the farm. Apparently the farmer was having a run of bad luck, but at least he could afford to pay us to deal with these problems.

"Ah, there you are" the farmer said when he spotted "Welcome back to Orchard Farm".

The last time I'd been here I had only seen the barn, which hadn't been very big as this farmer mostly grew fruit. Now I was getting to see more of the place, and I could tell that it was nearly harvest time. Which meant summer was finally over and that as the Starks of Winterfel were found of saying, winter was coming.

"About time you showed up" Whisper said to me "I was going to start without you".

I hadn't seen her for a day or two as my fellow Hero had been off doing something I most likely didn't want to know about.

"As I was just telling your friend here, the whole Orchard's overrun by Hobbes" the farmer was saying.

From what I remembered back when I had been studying the creatures of this world, Hobbs rarely came to the surface. When they did it was raid places for food and upon occasion they would take a child, but most of the time they stayed underground.

One of the few things that did attract them was bloodshed. Hobbs were scavengers by nature and they had no problems with looting from the dead and they were happy to eat corpses.

"I could get rid of them myself" Whisper said to me "But it might be more fun like this. Whoever kills the most Hobbes gets the trophy, right?"

There had been nothing about a trophy on the quest card.

"Trophy?" I asked the farmer.

He was who had offered the quest. However it was Whisper who answered.

"Whoever kills the most Hobbs gets a necklace made out of their teeth" she explained.

That sounded a little gruesome, but having trophies to display was part of being a Hero.

"I don't care how many you each kill" said the farmer "Just get rid of them before they drink all my scrumble!".

I'd heard of scrumble it was technically cider as it was made from apples, but it was an effective paint stripper.

"Those little sods cracked open the crates down by the river at the far end of the path" the farmer said "And they've been drinking!".

Well so had I.

"Then I guess that's where we should go!" Whisper shouted "Race you there, Gothic!"

Well at least now she was using the right name.

(Line Break)

"Well done!" the farmer cheered as as he viewed the pile of corpses that Whisper and I had made "You really taught the Hobbes a lesson. They'll think twice before they try stealing from me again!"

Well they were dead so they wouldn't be thinking about anything ever again, but most species were repelled by the scent of their dead so our actions here might keep other Hobbs from stirring up trouble.

"Not bad" Whisper said as she finished making jewellery out of the teeth of monsters "I suppose the trophy is yours then".

She threw me the necklace she had made and I put in my pouch as I didn't want to wear it. At least not yet.

"Well I've had enough of this" Whisper said before taking out her Guild Seal "Maybe the Guild has something more interesting for me".

As she teleported I got the feeling that I wasn't going to see her again for a while, and I found that I didn't really mind. She and I had a complex relationship. I wasn't even sure if we were just friends any more.

"We better make a move and check on the damage" the farmer said as he tipped his hat at me "Farewell Hero".

Since it wasn't far I decided to walk home. I figured that soon I would be heading to Darkwood, and since that part of the world was very dangerous then I needed to prepare.

(Line Break)

 **Woods. Albion**

"Some Bandits have set up a tolling in this region be careful" the Guildmaster warned me via the Seal.

I jumped again upon hearing someone else's voice in my head, but this time I was able to keep calm.

"A toll huh" I said while reading a sign.

'Non payment of Toll will result in your agoneizing death'

"They spelt both 'none' and 'agonising' wrong" I said to my dog "Well what you expect from such low class thugs?"

Still it hardly mattered as the dead body the bad guys had strung by the sign was a very effective a warning.

"I'm afraid this path is private. It'll cost ya to get through" said one of the crooks "Or we could always use yer head as an ornament".

Now that I closer I was able to see the heads. These baddies had quite the collection, they must have killed a lot of people.

"Either way suits us" the bandit was now saying "So unless you're wanting to end up dead, you'll hand over your purse".

While he spoke I looked around and saw that not many of the outlaws were paying attention to me. Also while there were a lot of them, they didn't seem to be ready for a fight.

"Hand over the money and I'll let ya pass" the crook said.

I couldn't even afford the toll as I'd already spent the reward for my last quest. Not only had I needed to repair my armour I'd also wanted to improve my home with some proper decorations. Then there were other expenses, such as buying more food and replacing things I'd broken. Last of all since I'd know I would be facing werewolves I'd gotten myself a silver dagger and some silver tipped arrows. Such things were costly, but I didn't want to get torn to shreds.

Which meant that I had to use violence at this point as I needed to get past these guys in order to met up with the Traders I was suppose to escort through Darkwood.

With this in mind I punched the crook who had been talking to me hard enough that he was knocked out. I wasn't that good at non-lethal combat I was rather talented when it came to hitting people.

"Let's get em" I said to my dog while drawing my sword.

(Line Break)

 **Darkwood. Albion**

Later on my furry friend and I were walking when I spotted a Demon Door. I couldn't remember what was required to get past the doors, but I did recall that each had a treasure behind it, and I could do with some treasure as my fortune had not grown.

"This is the deal" the Demon Door spoke as Oggy started to yelp.

I tried to calm the mutt.

"It's fine they're harmless" I assured the canine "It can't hurt us".

Well I didn't think they were capable of doing that.

"You perform an act of great evil in my sight" the Demon Door said "and I'll pop open".

That sounded simply enough. However unless I was willing to murder some innocent person I wouldn't be getting this door open.

"Don't worry" I told the dog as we carried on the dark path and towards two frighten traders "I won't hurt anyone just to get some gold".

The couple of merchants, the guys paying me to escort them across Darkwood, were understandably happy to see me as this was a dangerous part of the world. It was a forest region that encompassed much of southern Albion, and the only way to get from Greatwood to Barrow Fields without taking a ship.

The stories say that is infested with nymphs, balverines, hobbes, and trolls, as well as many bandits ready to ambush a lone traveller. There were just two safe sanctuaries in the entire wood, a small merchant camp and the famous Darkwood Bordello, what was I guessed was a whore. Also, there was the Chapel of Skorm which wasn't at all safe as that was where an evil hero might take an unwitting follower to be sacrificed to Skorm. Which was why I would never go there as I might get tempted.

"Thank Avo you're here! I thought we were going to die in this hellish place!"on the traders said to me "We have to get to the Barrow Field at the other end of Darkwood, you lead the way!"

This was not going to be easy. In fact these traders were most likely going to die, and I might too.

"We'll be right behind you!" the other merchant was now saying "The sooner we put this forest behind us the better!".

I couldn't deny that there I was getting a creepy vibe about this place.

"There are unnatural things out there!" the first trader told me

That was when we heard a monstrous howl.

"The hell was that?" the second trader asked.

"Something big" I answered while drawing my sword "And dangerous, so we best get moving".

As we headed down the road we saw a dealer of goods up ahead. By the looks of things he had tried to make it through Darkwood by himself.

"Argh! Help!" the businessperson was calling out "Something bit me and left me for dead!".

It didn't take me three guesses to figure what had mauled this poor man.

"Please let me come with you!" he begged "Don't leave me here to die".

I was debating wherever or not I should kill him as an act of mercy, but I wasn't sure if I could simply end his life as he was no enemy of mine.

"We can't let him follow us, he's infected!" one of traders said "He'll be eating our guts before we know it!"

Actually Balverines rarely ate anyone, they preferred to dine on animals and to infect people.

"We have sworn a trader oath! the other trader reminded his fellow salesmen "We have to help him!"

While I didn't have to help him and I didn't have to harm him either. I was sure that there would be plenty of chances to do both to other people on this trip.

"I can pay well and I won't be any trouble" the man told me.

Well I did like money.

"He can come" I told the group while showing everyone my silver dagger "I am not leaving him here to die and if he does 'turn' I can handle it".

There was a chance that he wouldn't turn as a Balverine had to bite a person to become infected simply being cut with claws wasn't enough, and there other ways to fight off the curse. It wasn't hopeless until a person transformed for the first time. Only this man was doomed as long as we stayed in Darkwood as this place was cursed.

"Thank you Hero" the wounded trader said "I am so very grateful".

He might not be should I end up stabbing him with my new dagger.

"Come on lets get moving" I ordered the group.

The three traders followed me.

(Line Break)

 **Darkwood. Albion**

"Now remember if we come under attack don't just stand there" I was saying to the three traders as we trekked through Darkwood"You need to give me space to move and you should try to find somewhere close by to hide, even if its just behind a tree".

Upon going down some old and worn steps I heard a growling noise that was coming from my dog, he had spotted another Demon Door.

"Beware traveller I block the way to all but the most combat-hardened if you request, my guardians will test your mettle in combat. Meet their challenge and the reward I hide will be yours"

Had I been alone I might have gone for it as I had a lot of combat experience, but I didn't want to risk the well being of the men that I was suppose to be protecting.

That was when Oggy growled and barked, and I knew that a Balverine was approaching. The chill going up my spine only made it more clear to me that we were in peril.

When the wolf man thing appeared I slashed at few times with my sword. The unnatural beast snarled at me and then jumped high into the trees.

"Where the hell did it go?!" one of the Traders called out.

I didn't know where exactly the monster was, but I had fair idea of where it was going to be, so when I sensed movement behind me I span the spot and drove me sword into the creatures neck.

Silver was the only thing that could kill a Balverine according to legend, however according to Heroes who had battled these beings they could be slain with normal weapon it just took a lot more effort.

With this in mind I pushed so that blade went through the creature's neck and the sword only stopped when it meant solid rock.

"Guardians attack" the Demon Door commanded.

I could only assume that touching the stone face with my blood stained weapon had triggered the door. Not that it matter as what did concern was that I load of Hobbes had just appeared.

"Let's get them, boy" I said to my dog.

I kicked out and hit a Hobbe magic user in the chin just as he, assuming they had gender, was charging up his staff. When the little monster hit the ground the crystal ball on top of the staff exploded.

When my vision returned to normal I found that the rest of the Hobbes had been blinded much worse than I had. Which made sense as they lived underground and so were used to darkness were as walked in the sun.

This made it easy for me to slaughter the lot of them as when the horrid things tried to fight back the abominations did more far more damage to each other than they did to me.

"Okay that wasn't so tough" I said while panting.

I'd been on the road for most of the day so I badly needed a rest.

"You defeated my guardians! the Demon Door said before opening up "I am knackered. Go on let yourselves in".

Now we had somewhere to rest.

(Line Break)

 **Darkwood Sanctum. Albion**

"Looks like a good place to rest" I said as I led the Traders inside.

What from I knew of Demon Doors only the person who opened them could enter the space behind them, although they could bring other people inside with them. So if anything out there wanted to come in here and eat us they would have to pass another test. However I mentioned none of that I was more interested in what treasure there was inside the chest.

What's in there?" one of the Traders asked me.

I opened it up in order to find out.

"Will User Dark Boots, Gloves, Upper Robe and Lower Robe" I said.

Had I been a Hero of Will then this would be a great find, as it was I could at least sell the items of clothing for some gold as fine clothes like these were hard to come by.

"Its late" I then told the merchants "Get some rest we'll be on the road again soon".

This was the only safe place to sleep within Darkwood aside from the camp that we were heading there, but we wouldn't make there until tomorrow night, and then only if we got up extra early.

While an adult Hero could function for days without food or rest I didn't want to find out the hard way if I had reached that level or not.

(Line Break)

 **Darkwoods. Albion**

"There's something odd about those mushrooms" I said as the early morning mist cleared to show a swap that had some odd plant life "I think they're dangerous".

As it turned out I was right.

"Careful! They explode when something comes near them and whatever inside them burns ya bad" one of the Traders informed me "You need to clear a safe path for us"

I figured that a few fireballs would do the trick, and I also understood that the mushrooms had some sort of acid inside them.

"Bandits!" someone then yelled

I then saw the crooks who were now charging at us. Right past the exploding mushrooms. It didn't take a tactical genius to come up with a plan. A few low powered fireballs popped the mushrooms and soon the outlaws were retreating while screaming there heads off.

"And I thought this place was dangerous" I said with a laugh "So far we haven't even found a decent fight".

When the Howling started I knew I'd regret saying those words.

(Line Break)

 **Darkwood Camp. Albion**

"Oh thank Avo, its the camp!" cheered one of the traders.

I too was grateful to any deities who may have aided us in finding this place as my feet were killing me, and I didn't think I could fight anymore.

"Let's rest up" advised the trader with the moustache.

All the other guys in the group had done was walk, and sometimes hide. I was the one who had thought off the monsters.

"I need to change clothes" the third merchant said while looking at his torn clothing "Which is another expense".

He wasn't the only one in need of clothing as my armour was torn in places, it was possible to get it fixed but it wouldn't be cheap. I really needed to upgrade to some proper armour like chain-mail, but I wasn't yet strong enough to easily move around with so much weight.

Still it wasn't all bad as there was plenty of food here, and given the sheer amount of armed men around I didn't think anyone would bother us here, so once I had my business taken care off I took out my bedroll and got some sleep as this Hero stuff was bloody knackering.

However I didn't get any chance to sleep as someone screamed.

"GAH!" a voice called out.

I had a good idea as to what was happening so I took out my silver dagger and prepared to fight.

"What's wrong?"I heard a person ask.

An answer wasn't long in coming.

"I'm starting to turn! Get away from me!" a trader yelled

His body began to deform and his clothes tore off as a new Balverine emerged. Which meant I'd failed I had hoped to get him away from cursed place before he transformed.

"AHHH! HE'S TURNED! HE'S TURNED!" another trader screamed.

I aimed and threw the dagger.

"Don't let him bite you!" a voice was saying.

He need not have worried as the knife entered the Balveirne's body as it roared and that was the last thing it ever did as it quickly died. The silver weapon had given the monster merciful death. Just as I'd planned.

(Line Break)

It had taken three days to cross this cursed land and now that we were near the edge I'd decided to never come here again unless it was part of a huge army that was going to burn the woods down. This land was a place of evil and people shouldn't come here.

"We're almost there" I told the two remaining traders "Just a little..".

Before I could finish my sentence the ground began to shake.

"What the hell is that?!" someone asked in a panicked voice.

Before I could answer a fist punched through rock beneath our feet and moments a Troll began to emerge.

"WHOA!" the other trader shouted out.

The ground was shaking so badly that I found it hard to keep my footing.

"What the hell is that?!" the first trader asked again.

I decided to answer the question.

"It a Troll!" I said loudly enough to be heard.

My training had all been hitting Whisper with blunt instruments, as fun as that was, some of it had been about learning about the different threats that a Hero might face. That was how I knew that Balverines didn't like silver and that fire was the best way to deal with Hollowmen.

As for Trolls they also had a weakness, it was there roots. They were creatures of the earth with an elemental power that allowed them to draw strength from the ground. But if there roots that ran through their bodies were damaged they could repair their bodies, and if enough harm was done to their roots then would simply fall apart.

Lightening was useless against Trolls so I readied my bow, and prepared to shoot my foe's most vulnerable part. Oggy was proving to be a good distraction so I had time to aim.

I let the arrow lose and then I smiled when I saw that I had hit my target. The Troll had no real mouth, yet somehow it was able to roar in rage. And while it was doing that I hit it with another arrow.

But the monster also had arms and with those mighty limbs it was able to lift a bolder into the air. I moved behind a sturdy looking tree as I thought I would be the target, but as it turned out it was Oggy who was hurt. I heard a heartbreaking sound as my furry friend was hit.

"You killed my dog!" I heard myself scream.

Now I was beyond angry I hated the Troll for what it had done, and I hated this entire place. All of those intense feelings fuelled a massive fireball that was so big I had to hold it above my head. It should have burned my hands or at least made me sweat buckets, but I was cold inside not even warm.

Then I threw the over-sized fireball at the monster, and it exploded as I dropped the ground. I'd put more energy than I could afford to into that attack and while it had worked I had nothing left. If another monster came I'd be helpless.

That was when I saw my dog, he was limping towards me. One of his rear legs was broken, and every movement the animal made hurt him, yet he kept moving towards me. Oggy cared more about me than himself, he was so unselfish.

"Come here boy" I said as I forced myself to sit up.

As fast as I could I uncorked a Mana Potion I picked up from somewhere and after drinking it I placed my hands on my dog. I felt a strange tingle travel up my arms and golden light left my hands and healing my pet.

"So that's how you cast Heal" I muttered.

Somehow I'd known how to do that. Perhaps from a lesson that had been so long ago I couldn't even remember it.

"Hey look there's the entrance to Barrow Fields!" one of the traders then informed me "We're almost safe".

I didn't like the idea of travelling down a tunnel, as it was the perfect spot for an ambush. On the other hand we couldn't stay here as soon the sun would set and being out here during the night was simply insane.

"Let's go" I said the two merchants.

We ran through the tunnel as if the hounds of hell were chasing us, which wouldn't have surprised me at this point.

"Yes, we made it!" a trader cheered.

The sun seemed to much brighter on this side of the tunnel then the other. There was no reason for it, but it was true.

"I am never going back in there again" I swore.

And since there was a Cullis Gate nearby I wouldn't have to.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hero Gothic 1**

 **Part 8**

 **Oakvale. Albion**

The last time I had been in Oakvale the place had been on fire. From what I'd seen so far the place had been perfectly restored. I spent a few moments standing completely still, looking at the field where I'd been talking with Theresa shortly before the bandits had turned up. The memory seemed as it belonged to a different person, yet it kept replaying in my mind.

As I walked into the heart of the village, I realised that indeed everything was as it was before, but also it had changed. Everything was smaller now either because I was bigger, or perhaps it was because none of it really mattered to me anymore. The Guild had been my home for so long that I had no attachment to this place, not that I had ever tried to form one.

I only stopped walking around when somebody called out to me. I turned around and saw someone who I had completely forgotten until now. Her name was Emily and she had grown up, but something in the eyes reminded me of a little girl who had lost her teddy bear.

"Hello!" she said happily "I remember you! We thought you'd died in the awful Bandit raid all those years ago".

I even remembered the name of the teddy bear, somehow.

"Is that you, Emily?" I asked, wanting to be sure.

She smiled at me.

"Of course it is!" Emily confirmed "Don't you remember. I was looking for Rosie, my teddy bear just before the raid".

The girl, who was still a teenager by the looks of things, moved closer to me.

"After that horribly day my parents moved to Bowerstone, but I never really liked in there" she told me "So when we heard that the village was being rebuilt we came back".

I was glad to hear that not everyone had been killed.

"Emily!" someone called out.

The young women turned around for a moment and then faced me again.

"I have to go now" she said "But it was great to see you again. Bye"

Once I had finished waving I walked over to the tavern where Maze was waiting for me.

"There you are. I thought maybe you were getting too famous to be seen round here" Maze said.

Given that only one person had recognised me, and not for being a Hero, that was far from the truth.

"Have you found anything more about Theresa?" I asked.

I knew she was with a bandit called Twinblade, but Albion was a bit place, and I had barely seen any of it so far. Plus there were many parts of this world that were cut off from the rest due to large oceans, nasty swaps, haunted woods, and hot deserts.

"Sorry I'm afraid I've heard nothing more of your sister, and there is little else I can do" Maze replied "Yet there is hope. I've heard that a blind seeress lives among Twinblade's Bandit Clan. She may be able to tell you about your sister".

Maze took me down to the beach, and showed me a road that led to the Bandit camp.

"The seeress stands next to the Bandit King himself. And it's no coincidence the Bandits have been doing so well lately" Maze said to me "Have you heard of Twinblade?".

I hadn't heard of him at all outside of the video game, and by shaking my head I led Maze know that I didn't.

"He was a Hero once, a giant of a man" I was told "He had little patience for the Guild though. He left it and brought together more than a dozen Bandit factions under his banner".

I would not underestimate his Twinblade, anyone who could unite so many crooks had to be a very scary person.

"So you want me to sneak into the camp, deal with Twinblade and find the Seeress?" I asked.

Maze nodded.

"I always suspected he was behind the attack on Oakvale" the Will User was now saying "If that's the case then this your chance for revenge".

Which was something I had wanted in the past, but having seen the village rebuilt it didn't seem so important any more. Still I had to play the game and defeat Jack of Blades, and that meant defeating Twinblade.

"I have left a Quest card at the Guild with the details" Maze informed me before teleporting away.

My eyes narrowed as he vanished. I couldn't help feeling that I was being set up, yet for the life of me I could not remember if that happened in the game. Not that it really matter if I was because I wasn't strong enough to fight someone like Maze, at least not yet.

One day, when I had become much stronger, then I would stop dancing to other people's tunes, but until that day I had to act as if I had no clue what was really going on. Which wasn't that far from the truth really.

(Line Break)

Meanwhile in the Bandit camp a young women, no more than a girl really, was almost driven to her knees by the power of her latest vision. She saw two men, both of which were dressed in Bandit gear, but that was the only thing they had in common.

She saw the younger and much more powerful man charge forward to attack the older, more experienced fighter that she knew to be Twinblade. Then the vision faded.

"What was that?" the women questioned.

Normally her visions didn't just hit her like that, and also she tended to see the outcome of such events. For the first time in a good long while a vision had made her less certain of the future rather more sure of it.

"Are you alright?" A man question.

The women looked up and saw a bandit, who just happened to be the nephew of Twinblade. The woman saw him die in her next vision and so decided it best not to talk to the young man. Besides she had things to do, someone important was coming for a visit.

(Line Break)

Oakvale

"Oh, a Hero! I could really use your help sir" A man said to me as I headed inside the inn "I run a harmless little chicken contest down on the beach, but I'm having a bit of ghost trouble.

That might sound like he was setting up illegal cock fights, but this was Albion so it was just as likely that he was racing the chickens or something else rather harmless.

"Some deceased chicken-fancier no doubt. The thing is, he's scaring all my punters away" The man explained "You couldn't, you know...work some of your Hero magic and get rid of him, could you?"

The Will powers of a Hero weren't like using magic spells or being a priest. I couldn't just go and exorcise a ghost, but there were other ways of making a spirit move on, and if I remembered this quest correctly then this was a case of a soul having unfinished business rather than a haunting.

"Yeah sure" I agreed.

My dog and I walked down towards the beach and soon I saw a ghostly figure who was just standing around while looking towards the sea. Once I got close enough to be noticed the ghost turned to speak to me.

"Aaah. At long last, a kind soul who don't flee at the sight of me" the ghost said "I have paced this forsaken beach for so many years. Could it be that ye have been sent by the gods to lift me from my fierce torment?"

Mostly I was in it for the XP. Heroes grew stronger by getting out into the world and doing quests. Plus the pay was good.

"Something like that" was my reply "I'm here to help if that's what you need".

The ghost nodded.

"Ye see my body dwells at the bottom of the sea, gar, and my poor wife is left destitute and grieving" I was told "She thinks I was but a simple fisherman, and still be somewhere lost at sea".

I nodded to show that I was listening

"It may shock you to learn, that I had a small side-business in piracy. Gar!" the ghost then said.

I was not at all surprised, the guy even looked like a pirate.

"Yar, I hid my sinfully plundered treasure next to the jetty on the western beach. If you were to use a spade to dig it up and give it to my wife, I will reward you with plentiful riches, ye old sea dog!" the pirate proposed.

That might sound simple, but digging up the treasure could be a lot of work as 'next to the jetty' wasn't exactly a precise location. But I'd do my best.

(Line Break)

Oakvale.

"Oh my goodness. This is from my Husband?" The pirate's wife asked.

I decided to say as little as possible as I had no desire to lie to the woman, but nor did I wish to shatter any delusions she had about her dead husband.

"Yes" I said.

Sadly for me she didn't jut accept the shiny things.

"How did he make so much money?" she asked.

I thought fast, and came up with what I hoped was a good fib despite not wanting to lie, as I did enough of that already.

"He never told me the details" I said "Maybe he found he found some buried treasure".

The woman seemed to buy that lie.

"I know he really cared for me. He was such a good, honest man. Thank you so much. I will still pray to see him return safe one day" the women said "Right after I've done some shopping"

After that she left and I went back to the beach where the ghost pirate was waiting for me.

"Avast, yer've been trusty seadog, ye have!" the dead man said "Perchance now I can finally enjoy my death. But before I leave, I shall keep my end of the bargain, gar!"

I assumed that meant I'd be getting a reward.

"The rest of the swag be buried under the axe of a statue in the local graveyard. If it still be there, yer welcome to it. Now thank ye, and goodbye" the Ghost pirate said before vanishing.

Quickly, I went over to the graveyard and sought out my reward.

(Line Break)

On Route to Bandit Camp

The clifftop path was narrow and not at all flat, and although the place was dangerous, it was also quite at that moment when the Guildmaster started to talk to me through the Guild Seal I was able to clearly hear him.

You'll need to sneak past those Bandits to reach their camp. If any of them see you, they'll raise the alarm and lock the gate.

"I'll be careful" I muttered.

After telling Oggy to stay out of sight. I located the highest tree and climbed up it. Once I was settled on a branch readied myself to fire my bow.

Then I waited until one of the bandits was standing far enough away from the others before I let lose an arrow. The bandit I hit had been standing on the edge of the path while taking a piss, so when the arrow hit him he staggered forward and went over the edge.

He screamed and I aimed at the second bandit, who rather than raise the alarm, as I had thought he would, the bloke went to see what had happened to his buddy. He also got an arrow his back, and went over the edge. Like the other bandit that guy's body would end up feeding the seagulls as it would be pulverised into chunks now that it had hit the rocks below.

Like a ninja I then ran towards the third guard whom I caught completely of guard. I snapped the man's neck and then began to undress him, which was extremely unpleasant, but I needed at least some of his clothes in order to make it past the gate. Once I was done with him I tossed his body off the cliffs. Then I stashed my armour inside my pouch of holding, which was something all Heroes got as starting equipment.

"Things I do for XP" I muttered to myself.

Then I headed towards the gate, only stopping when I heard some people taking.

"Here, you heard what happened to Stern, Elirc?" one of the Bandits asked.

Someone else soon spoke.

"No Weston. What did the idiot do this time?" a man I assumed to be Elirc replied.

"He only lost his bloody cap in a raid. Was a week before he could get back in the camp" Weston told Elirc.

"Yeah, you can't get in unless you're in full gear these days" Elirc remarked "If you ask me, old Twinblade getting a bit jumpy. Don't know what's got into 'im" Weston said.

Thankfully I had the full gear so I would be able to get in without anyone knowing who and what I was.

(Line Break)

"So he's inside the camp?" Twinblade asked, as he sat upon his throne.

He was talking to a young blind woman, and she needed a moment before she could answer as she was trying to look into the future, but mostly what she was getting was the present.

"Yes" she said "and he's already killed three of your men".

Twinblade shifted in his seat.

"I see. So this little Hero does want a fight" the bandit king said, sounding amused "I'll crush him".

The Seer smirked.

"Do not underestimate him Twinblade. He has much more than mere physical strength" the blind woman warned.

The bandit king shifted in his seat for a second time.

"What do you mean?" Twinblade then asked.

(Line Break)

The gates opened and the watchman allowed me to proceed inside. I headed down the hill and into what was just part of the camp. As I looked around I saw many Bandits who were sitting by the camp fire, drinking beer and talking about recent event. They had no idea that one of the Heroes of the Guild had infiltrated their camp.

My dog, who had rejoined me without being summoned, and I both ran up the hill towards the gate to the next section of the camp. The doors opened and the guard gestured for me to go inside. Once inside, the doors closed behind me and I got worried. This was all a little too easy.

As soon as I'd finished thinking that I saw that the gate I needed to go through next was heavily guarded. This was a problem because if I attacked them then I'd ended up fighting the whole camp, and as powerful as I was I couldn't fight this many bandits.

Knowing that I would need a distraction I made my way up the hill towards where the prisoners were being kept. There I found another guard who was watching over some poor girls who had been locked up in cages. Not that I normally had a problem with women in cages, but this wasn't at all consensual.

"Come to look at Twinblade's entertainment?" the crook asked.

"Yeah" I replied simply.

I didn't sound like a bandit so it best for me to say as little as possible.

"Ain't they just lovely? Gonna be a fun party all right!" the bandit told me.

I took out a knife and before the thug could react I had a hand over his mouth and a knife in his back. Seeing this caused the women in the cages to scream, but that didn't attract any attention. So I figured that the bandits around here were used to hearing girls scream.

While I hid the body I found the prison key on the crook and I took it off him. I then went over to the cell and opened it.

"Thank you so much!" a woman thanked me.

She was wrong to be grateful as I was just using these young ladies as a distraction. They would be only be recaptured or even killed in short order.

Which left me wondering when I'd become the type of person who would put helpless people in danger in order to serve his own ends. Sure in the long term my defeat of Twinblade was a good thing, but I wasn't going to kill him in order to help people I was going to kill him for the rewards offered and so I could grow stronger.

"I thought we were going to die! But we have to leave quickly, before they notice!" another woman said.

The girls ran out of the cell and down the hill towards the gates. Unfortunately for them the guards, who had been baring my passage, noticed them and called out in alarm. Then the guards started chasing the women.

"Well done, the gate is open. You can into Twinblades area now"

I ignored the Guildmaster and headed through the now unguarded gate.

(Line Break)

Bandit Camp

"Stay here" I commanded my dog.

This fight was between the bandit king and I. No one else was to get involved.

"I've been waiting for you!" Twinblade said when I finally found him "Stand back, lads! Twinblade wants a word with this little hero!"

The bandit king was large and tall fellow, clothed in black, brown and red. Also he had used spikes and skulls to decorate himself. Those things, along with the two massive blades he held made him look more like Warhammer Ork than a man.

"She said a Guild-puppet would come, and here you are. My blades have been dying to meet you" Twinblade announced "They haven't tasted blood in days".

Had any of the other bandits said that I would have called it posturing, but Twinblade didn't need words in order to be threatening.

"Draw your blade, Guild-puppet. Let's see what you're made of " then bandit king ordered

Twinblade was the first to attack. He dashed forward and swiped his blades in such a way that had they connected I would have been cut in half, but luckily for me I was able to roll out of the way in time.

When I got back up I saw the criminal Hero hold up his weapons high into the air and then thrust them down to the dirt. Which caused the ground to become very unstable, and I fell over.

Thankfully I was quick on my feet and I was able to get up before the huge man could kill me. In fact I soon found that I was, if not faster, then more nimble, than the crooked Hero.

Which worked to my advantage, as when Twinblade charged at me when trying to match my speed, he couldn't stop as easily as I could. A couple of times he even trampled a few of his own men.

I took advantage of this, and every time he tried to trample me I would dodge. Then when his back was turned to me I would strike it.

During one of his attempts to crush me under his boots. I dropped down and slashed at his ankles. He tripped up and landed flat on his back. I took this chance to zap him with lightening, which while not doing much damage it did scare the shit out the crowd who were watching.

"Finish it quick then. I'd do to the same for you" Twinblade said with a groan.

Just as I was about to kill Twinblade it became so quiet that I was able to hear a woman gently say my name. I turned towards the source of the noise and I saw a young women came out of the tent.

"There you are" she said "I've been waiting for you".

She'd known I was coming just I'd known she'd be here.

"I've seen so many things. So much killing, so much dying" Theresa went on to say "I've seen you, Gothic. In a ring of sand and blood. An arena full of secrets. And I've seen the choice you'll have to make one day, between the darkness and the light"

Seerers annoyed me, they never just came out and told you the future they had to spew out a load of silly rubbish that tended to only make sense after the foreseen event had already taken place.

"Theresa?" Twinblade pleaded.

The blind girl look at the bandit king with an expression of sadness.

"I'm sorry, Twinblade. Your path has come to an end just as all our paths do sooner or later" Theresa replied

Well at least she'd been able to predict that I was going to kill him.

"But before I leave. Gothic I have a present for you. Something to make up for what I'm going to have to do to you one day".

Again that was awfully cryptic, but I no time to think about that as Theresa held up her arm and I got the most incredible rush I'd ever felt. The power that was inside every Hero filled me completely, it was such an intense experience that by the end of it I was on my hands and knees, barely able to breath.

"That was even better than sex!" I declared.

Which had been somewhat of a bad thing to say since my sort of sister had been the one to make me feel that way.

"He finds you when you're sleeping, and when the daylight fades" Theresa warned.

After that she was surrounded by light and she disappeared.

"What are you waiting for? Finish it or leave me alone. I'm dead anyway" Twinblade then said to me I'm no one's King anymore".

I turned to look at the broken Bandit King, and all of his men. The bandits who could stand up were all backing away from me.

"Run, bitches!" I shouted as powerful Force Push exploded out of me.

(Line Break)

The Arena

The Witchwood Arena was alive with shouts and cheers everywhere. Warriors battled against one another, beasts were slain, humans were tortured by their gruesome opponents, others were eaten alive by the beasts put up against them.

It was the kind of quality entertainment that could keep even the most bloodthirsty crowd amused for hours. However Maze wasn't in the stands, enjoying the show. He was down in the dark, looking for someone.

"What is it Maze?" asked the entity.

Maze looked at the thing that had the form of man, but he knew that it was not a man.

"It turns out that the boy was able to find his sister" the Will User reported.

The being stepped out from the shadow

"Our boy is growing up" the creature said.

Maze was more concerned that the entity.

"He is no longer a boy Jack" the Will User corrected "and you shouldn't take him lightly. Though he is young, he is the most promising hero Albion has seen in years".

The being had no face, at least not one that could be seen, but Maze was still able to sense its change of mood.

"And where is there proof of this?" asked Jack coldly.

Maze gave the desired informed.

"He has defeated the bandit king Twinblade. Something no Hero has done before." said Maze.

Jack of Blades didn't find this to be impressive.

"Oh he has, has he" Jack said "So, our little hero was able to defeat a bandit. Perhaps I should flee now?".

Maze knew the creature was being sarcastic.

"Jack, I'm serious. If you let him live much longer, he could become stronger than you" warned Maze.

A hand with a dark red glove suddenly shot out and wrapped its around Maze's neck before lifting him off the ground.

"Nobody is stronger than me. I do not care what anyone says about him, he will never be able to defeat me!" Jack of Blades declared "Once I have the sword, then nothing else will matter. Do you understand that?".

Maze struggled to speak.

"Yes..." the Will User was able to say.

Jack dropped Maze and the being's mood shifted again.

"If I were to kill him now, then there would be no way for me to get the key so I need him alive" Jack said "and I need the power in his blood".

Maze nodded and turned away, but before he could leave the creature spoke again.

"Don't disappoint me when it comes time to kill the boy. I know how attached you have gotten to him" said Jack.


	9. Chapter 9

Author Note

I really need a beta reader, spell checking and editing all these chapters is a lot of work. I hope people enjoy this story or all my work was for nothing.

 **Hero Gothic 1**

 **Part 9**

 **Rose Cottage**

After accepting yet another quest, my faithful hound and I teleported to the Greatwood Cullis Gate and then we made our way to the Rose cottage. Once outside of the cottage, I knocked on the door and waited for it to open. When the door did open I saw an old lady who looked like she had been crying.

"James is that you?" she asked

Well I'd once been known by the name of James, but that had been a lifetime ago. Back when I'd lived in a world with Pizza, HDTV, and indoor plumbing. I really missed those things.

"Oh your not my Grandson" the woman then said.

I shook my head.

"No I'm not. I'm Gothic. I'm from the Heroes Guild" I told the old lady "From what I understand your Grandson has gone missing. I'm here to help you find him".

This news cheered the elderly lady up.

"Yes. James is my grandson. You have to find him!" the Grandmother insisted "He's the only relative I have left. Such a sweet, helpful boy. I don't know how I'd manage without him".

I didn't think this woman would be able to pay me very well for recovering his grandson, but cash rewards weren't the only reason to go on quests. XP aside a Hero needed renown, and I heard that sometimes young ladies would reward male heroes in a way only a woman could. That hadn't happened to me as of yet, and I really hoped that this old lady wouldn't be the first one to offer.

"Do you any idea where could be?" I asked.

I'd rather not have to search the entire of Albion for one person. It would be very time consuming, but I knew it wouldn't be simply otherwise this old lady wouldn't have made a request to the Guild for a Hero.

"I knew this would happen. He's gone back to those caves. I just know it. He got quite a scare with the things he saw down there last time, I can tell you. But he did bring back some gold" the Grandmother informed me "Oh, and he found something else while he was there. I don't know what it's for, but it might be useful. Here".

The Grandmother gave me a strange hexagonal object. I had no idea what it was but I put it in my pocket anyway as it was most likely a quest item.

"Please find him!" the old woman pleaded "I don't know what I would do if anything happened to him."

The Grandmother started to cry, and then closed the doors to the cottage.

"Which caves?" I wondered.

I'd have to start with the ones nearby and then expand my search. Hopefully that wouldn't take too long.

(Line Break)

Hobbe Cave

As luck would have it there were caves near to Rose Cottage, what was less lucky was getting ambushed by Hobbes once I got inside cave. It took a while for Oggy and I to slay all the monsters, not because they were that tough, but because they had an annoying habit of running around in circles while screaming their heads off. This made it hard to hit them with a sword or a spell.

Once that lot of monsters were dealt with my dog and I entered another part of the cave, one that had been separated from the rest by a big wooden door. Inside we found more Hobbes and a prisoner who was being held in a cage. Sadly he wasn't a hot chick.

"Are you James?" I asked.

The quest giver hadn't told me the age of her grandson so it was possible he was the guy I was here to save.

"No" he replied "I'm Stanly".

Despite him not being the bloke I sought I still set the poor person out of the cage.

"Thanks, mate" the man said "It was rather embarrassing getting caught by those Hobbes. Me and the lads were searching the caves for treasure. Legends say it's full of the stuff. Well protected too. They caught us and stuck us in cages. Been taking us away one by one ever since"

I felt just a little sympathy for the poor people who had been captured. Which meant I hadn't yet become a totally heartless bastard. Not that I knew why I'd become so cold blooded. Perhaps the real me was coming out now that I had a taste of real power.

"What happened to them?" I asked.

I figured I might as well save the treasure hunters, assuming there were any left, if nothing else it would increase my renown and I needed more of that if I was ever going to get invited the arena.

"I don't know what they did to the rest, but I heard screams that'd chill your blood. But, hey, less people, bigger share, right? So what you say we go looking together?" Stanly proposed.

More riches would be good. I really needed to buy some health potions just in case things didn't go well for me in the arena.

"Sure" I replied

The three of us left the room and made our way through the underground chambers. In one room we found two chests in a throne like room. The treasure hunter and I opened them and were presented with some jewels, gold coins, and jewellery. Also there was a flame Augmentation which was worth quite a lot.

"Don't forget that half of this is mine" the treasure hunter said.

I had no problem sharing, besides there was only so much I could fit into my pouch.

"Of course" I replied "We can come back for it later. For now let's see if any of your buddies are still alive".

The treasure hunter nodded and then followed me out of the room.

(Line Break)

Hobbe Cave

As it turned out I wouldn't be sharing anything as when we got ambushed by Hobbes for the second time, the treasure hunter died fighting. Which left me free to find James and to keep all the treasure for myself.

At the end of long passage way Oggy and I found a stone door that required a key to open it. The strange device that the Grandmother had given me earlier was the key, which made things a lot easier.

"Come on we need to find James" I said to my dog.

We went down some steps and entered a massive underground chamber. There was a large sphere in the centre of the room, somebody who looked like a small boy and a totally naked woman. Only she was the most strangest woman I had ever saw. She had blue hair, blue eyes and elf ears, but none of that was weird as the white transparent wings she had sticking out of her back.

"I've been waiting for you, Gothic" greeted the sexy creature.

Either I was more famous than I had thought, or there was another odd female around here who could see the future.

"Okay then" I said.

I looked over at James, who wasn't restrained in anyway I could see, but he seemed to be in some kind of trance so he didn't even notice I was here.

"Well I just came for the boy so please can you hand him over" I requested.

With startling speed she came right up to, placed her left hand on my check and looked me right in the eyes.

"Oh no he's mine" the creature told me "Give me a sacrifice in return and you can have him".

Well I wasn't going to drag some other poor sod down here. If nothing else it would take too long.

"Or you can give yourself to me" she added with a wink

I had to ask.

"What do you mean by: give yourself to me?" I wondered.

The flying female being flew some distance away and then blew me a kiss.

"Something we'd both enjoy" she said "Afterwards your little friend will go free".

Well it was better than fighting.

(Line Break)

Rosewood Cottage.

"Wait! You're not going to leave me with her, are you?" the boy called James asked "You think the Nymph was bad? My granny is worse!".

Well the Nymph had let us both go unharmed in exchange for a good fucking, although I had no clue why she'd made that deal, still she had been going to do something nasty to young James and I had to wonder what his Grandmother could have done to compare to the Nymph.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

I was soon given an answer.

"Whose idea did you think it was to go into those caves in the first place?" he said.

I had assumed he was just an adventurous young lad. I'd gone exploring at his age, and since there were monsters in this world it didn't seem that odd that he'd been captured by one of them.

"Well, I'm not standing for it much longer" James decided "First chance I get, I'm out of here".

He then sighed.

"I'll have to pick up a few things first though" he went on to say "And I suppose you want your reward. Come on".

We reached the house and found that the old lady had been waiting for us as she opened the door before I knocked.

"Oh thank you for returning him to me, Hero!" The Grandmother said before facing her Grandson "James come here."

James just ran past her, into the house.

"Hey what's going on? I demand you stop right now. I have chores for you" The Grandmother was now saying "Why are you packing?"

I decided to stay out this, and to go back to the Guild. I had more than enough treasure to have made it worth while going down into that cave, and I had no desire to get involved in a domestic situation.

(Line Break)

Heroes. Guild.

Once back at the Guild, I went looking for a new Quest Card. As I was reading, the Guildmaster made his way over to me.

"Congratulations on your latest victory" he said.

Hearing that made me chuckle.

"I don't know if I'd call it a victory" I said to the old man.

Unless he was talking about Twinblade, now that had been a victory.

"Call it what you will" the guildmaster replied "Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that Maze wants to see you. He's up in his chambers".

I spent a moment wondering when the whole stabbing me in the back thing would start. I knew that Maze would turn on me soon enough because by now it was clear he was manipulating my life, and while I couldn't recall if the Guild Master would too, I figured it was best to assume that he would.

'I'll head there now" I told the old man.

(Line Break)

When I entered Maze's quarters, I saw the older Hero standing in front of the fire place.

"The Guildmaster mentioned that you wanted to see me" I said to the Will User.

"Indeed I do" Maze said with a nod "How did you visit to the seeress go? Do you know where your sister is?".

I figured that he knew he knew a lot more about what was going on than I did so I told him what had happened. Well more or less. I felt out the bit about my 'sister' giving me a rather nice power up.

"So you really found your sister before losing her again" Maze summarised "Not many could achieve such an outcome, and I would have never imagined her living among bandits".

I figured she had been hiding from Jack of Blades.

"Listen, before you go wandering off again. I have a favour to ask of you" requested Maze "An old friend of mine has gone missing. He calls himself the Archaeologist. He may have stumbled onto something big; perhaps big enough to put his life in danger".

Oddly I had no memory of this quest, but that didn't surprise me as I hadn't played the game in a very, very long time.

"There's a rumour he may be hiding somewhere in Witchwood" the powerful Will User went on to say "You can use a cullis gate to get there. I only hope it isn't too late".

I wasn't tired, and I could grab something to eat from the kitchens here at the guild so there was no reason for me not to head to Witchwood right away.

"I'll head out right away" I replied, before hurrying from the room.

(Line Break)

Witchwood.

Not long after using the Cullis Gate I found myself facing a Demon Door. Of course, it would only be useful to me when opened and to open it, I had to fulfil a certain requirement.

'I only open to those who know my name' the Demon Door informed me "Only one person knows my name, but I doubt you'll find him… even at the Temple of Avo".

Hearing that made me chuckle.

"So if I go to the Temple of Avo" I said "I'll find the person who knows your name?".

My map informed me that the temple wasn't far from where I was now.

"I did not say that!" the Door replied with a hint of worry.

Rather than reply I looked at my map, and after locating the temple on it I raced off.

(Line Break)

The sword was stuck in the stone, and the challenge was to pull it out. Which seemed simple enough as either I would be able to do it or I wouldn't. So I put my hands on the handle, bent my legs and pulled.

"Hmphgrrh" I grunted.

The sword stayed in place and all I got was a lot of pain in my lower back.

"Okay" I said to myself before clapping my hands "Let me give it another go"

I pulled as hard as I can, holding my breath. I pulled and pulled, yet nothing happened. At least until I lost my grip and ended up flat on my back, much to the amusement of the crowd.

"Right I'm going to Dean Winchester this mother fucker!" I declared.

I lacked explosives, but I could generate some kick ass fire balls.

"Everyone stand back" I ordered.

By channelling my Will I formed a massive fireball, and then threw it at the boulder which shattered under the force. The sword was not broken, and as I picked it up from the the ground. I felt the urge to yell something.

"I have the power!"

Sadly I didn't transform gain all the powers of Castle Grey Skull, but I had a cool magical sword, which was cool.

(Line Break)

"You know you could have just told me your name" I said when I got back to the talking door "or maybe you could have come up with a clever riddle. You know something that involve me running half away across the country just to open a door".

The Demon Door grumbled something incomprehensible under his breath as he opened. I immediately entered to the area beyond and found the Archaeologist.

"So, you found me"Maze's friend said, not sounding too happy "That's just grand. If you can find me, so can they".

The way he had used the word 'they' sounded rather ominous.

"And who are, they?' I questioned "Tax collectors, your ex-wives. Morris dancers?".

All of which were worth avoiding.

"Jack of Blades" the Archaeologist whispered before raising his voice slightly "If I had of known he was interested in those Focus Sites I never would have started studying them".

I had no idea what these Focus Sites were.

"Look, I don't have time to explain" the Archaeologist then said "but you can read my journal if you want. I don't want it anymore".

He threw it at me, before running off. I didn't bother to chase after the man as I had only been asked to find him. Instead I read some of the journal.

An ancient evil, Jack of Blades once ruled Albion as part of the Court before his defeat at the hands of William Black. However, Black was only able to destroy Jack's physical form, and his spirit lived on in his Mask. He continued his reign of terror by possessing any being unfortunate enough to put it on.

"Note to self" I muttered "Do no put on any masks".

Then I figured that this wasn't the best place to stand around reading so I left. Once I was outside, I found that Maze was waiting for me.

"How did it go?" Maze asked

Given that the Will User had to have known where the Archaeologist had been, in order to be waiting for me here, I had to wonder why he'd hadn't just gone inside and grabbed the guy. It was another mystery.

"I found him, but I lost him when he threw his journal at me and ran off to find somewhere else to hide from someone called Jack of Blades" I reported while handing Maze his friend's journal "I'm surprised you didn't see him out here".

Maze examined the book for a moment, and then teleported away without a saying a word. I figured I might as well head back to the Guild and pick up another question. I still had a lot of renown to earn, and skills to sharpen.

(Line Break)

Knothole Glade

When I entered a place known as Knothole Glade, which contained a village that had requested the aid of a Hero, I was welcomed to the neighbourhood by two balverines that weren't too happy about getting a visitor. Lucky for me I was able to deal with them by throwing my silver knife into the neck of one and by stunning the other with lightening long enough to be able to remove its ugly head with my awesome new sword.

Then, when I approached the village, I saw the gates were locked and that there were several people, banging on the gate, begging to be let in. As I approached them, three more balverines appeared.

Using silver tipped arrows, another wise invest of mine, I shot them all before they could harm the villagers. Like the werewolves of legend the balverines had a very nasty reaction to silver, it didn't take much of the stuff to slay one of them. It also helped that the Seeress had upgraded me quite a bit so I could now summon up magical arrows that would strike a foe along with the the physical arrows that I fired.

"What's going on?" I demanded to know, while walking over to the scared people.

I was soon answered.

"They've locked the gates to stop the balverines from entering the village!" one of them explained "But they've locked us out and won't let us in just in case a balverine gets inside. They just left us out here to die!".

I could see the logic in that action, but it was rather pointless given that balverines could jump really high, and some of them could even take human form. With that in mind I walked over to the gate with the intent of getting everyone inside.

"Open the gate!" I ordered.

Someone on the other side of the gate spoke to me.

"I don't think so, sonny" a voice replied "I can't risk the balverines getting into the village".

Well that wasn't a problem right now.

"I killed the Balverines" I told the person on the side of the gate "So open the damn gate".

That didn't get me what I wanted.

"Who do you think you are giving me orders?" the voice enquired.

Now I was getting annoyed.

"I'm from the Guild" I said, while repressing my anger "and if you don't open this gate I'm going to use my Will powers to blow it apart".

That had been a bluff for two reasons. First of all I didn't even know if I could do that, and second even I could have I wouldn't because that would defeat the entire purpose of being here, which was to defend the village.

"Oh alright then" the voice said "Just make sure you hurry. There could be more of them out there!'

The moment the gate was opened, the villagers ran inside. I slipped in too as the gates were closed once more. I then headed into the village of Knothole Glade, and found the man who looked to be in charge

"Bloody balverines!" the man was grumbling to himself "In all my years as Chief, I've never seen anything like it".

It seemed that I had picked out the right bloke.

'"Well, hopefully you won't have to deal with them much longer" I said to the chief guy before going on to introduce myself "I'm Gothic. The Guild sent me".

The bloke was very happy to see me.

"Ah, thank goodness you're here!' the Chief exclaimed before telling me what was going on "We might have had a chance by ourselves if the bloody beasts weren't following a white balverine. It comes into our village and kills who ever it wants".

A roar suddenly echoed around the settlement, making everyone jump.

"It must be attacking the warehouse at the bottom of that hill!' the Chief said, while looking nervously towards the warehouse he just mentioned.

Before he'd finished speak I had one of the silver tipped arrows in my hand and I was running towards the warehouse. When the monster came in sight I pulled back the bow string as far as it would go, before releasing it. I managed to get it right through its heart. Next I yelled out loudly enough to informed everyone that the threat had passed.

"I don't believe it" the Chief said to me as people slowly began to come out of their houses "You managed to kill it with one arrow".

Really when you had the right tools for the right job, along with the right knowledge, then any task could be completed easily enough.

"You have our gratitude" the Chief then said "A Hero of your stature deserves the glory of fighting in the Arena. I'm sure you'll be invited once news of this victory gets around".

Perhaps I was ready to fight in the arena, but I was still going to take a bucket load of healing potions with me, and maybe get a new sword too.

"So is there a pub around here?" I asked of the Chief "Slaying monsters is thirsty work".

I also hoped that there would be grateful maidens around here who would want to thank me saving the village, but I didn't have my hopes up.

(Line Break)

The Guild

The next day, when I returned to the Guild in order inform the Guild Master of my success I was given a letter.

Dear Gothic

I have always known we were special, and now I have found proof. The book that I have sent with this letter – The Bloodline – describes a bloodline from the days of the Old Kingdom, and its connection to a sword powerful enough to rule the world. It is a bloodline Mother belonged to, I am sure of it. It is also the bloodline we belong to.

Love Theresa

"Where is the book that came with this letter?" I asked of the messenger.

He just shook his head, and I figured that Maze must have taken it in order to help keep me int he dark about what was really going on around here.

"Congratulations, my boy" the Guildmaster said when he entered the map room "It would seem that your exploits haven't gone unnoticed. Many people throughout Albion are impressed with your triumphs. You have been invited to fight in the arena".

Well if nothing else at least the plot was advancing.

"So, why don't you run along to the Arena in Witchwood and show the people what a real Hero looks like" he then said.

I would after getting something to eat, and ensuring that I had all the needed supplies for such a trip. Also I wanted to be armed with the best sword I could get my hands on. I even had an weapon augment ready for it.

"Wish me luck" I said as I headed out the door.


	10. Chapter 10

Hero Gothic 1

Part 10

The Arena.

Today was the day, I was going to fight in the arena. I had prepared as best as I could, I had new armour, a set of dark chainmail, a kick ass magic sword, as well as plenty of potions.

"Ah, you must be that new Hero everyone's talking about" a guard who standing just outside the area said "I don't think we've ever had someone so young compete before".

Well I'd been reincarnated, or something like that, so I was older than I looked.

"No pets allowed" said a larger guard.

I ordered Oggy to wait for me by the entrance.

"If you'd follow me" the shorter guard then requested.

I followed the man.

"Welcome to the Hall of Heroes" the guard said as we entered the main building "Now, I'll take you to the Arena Preparation Area".

As we walked through the Hall of Heroes, I looked around with great interest at all the statues of great Heroes. The guard noticed my interest and began to talk about what I was looking at.

"I tell you, the history of his place is wasted on the public" he told me "These are the Arena's first Heroes. Our land's heritage, but do the people care?"

He answered his own question.

"No, they don't" he said.

He looked at me as if he expected me to comment on what he had just been taking about.

"I wonder why?" I asked him.

It looked interesting to me.

"I don't need to wonder, son, I know why" my escort was now saying "The people don't want history. All they want is blood on the sand. Still, I suppose every era needs its own Heroes".

Personally I thought people would be better off if they lived in a world that didn't require any heroes at all, or at least not super powered ones. But as long as there were magical creatures around and bandits running amok in the countryside this world would need people like me.

"Still it's a shame that they forget all the great deeds these Heroes have done" my escort when on to say "All their sacrifices and, in some cases, the misery they caused. Though I can understand why people would want to forget all the evil bastards".

Having met Twinblade I could understand that point of view, even if I didn't agree with it as forgetting their horrible acts and the suffering caused could led to other generations repeating those mistakes.

"Who knows, maybe one day there will be a Hero everyone will remember throughout time" the guard then said "Maybe you're that Hero".

Well given that I was the Hero of Oakvale I would remembered for a very long time, assuming that I could defeat Jack, and if I didn't then it wouldn't matter what anyone remembered.

"Maybe I will be" I said as we entered the Arena Preparation room "and one day you can tell your grandkids that you met before me before my stunning victory in the arena".

My escort smirked.

"Just go and stand with those contestants over there, and you'll be filled in what you have to do" said the guard while nodding to a group of men "Good luck, lad"

I would need it. That I didn't doubt.

"Thank you" I replied, before going over to join the other competitors.

I noticed at once that everyone here was male. Whisper was suppose to fight with me in later rounds, assuming things went as in the game, but I wasn't too worried as it could just be that the female arena fighters had a different staging area than the men.

Moments later, a man with a warrior stripe hairstyle, that he had died green for some reason, joined us and explained what was going to happen.

"Welcome to the Witchwood Arena" the event organiser said "A couple of basic points first. First of all, I must remind you to keep your aggression for the Arena itself. Anyone caught trying to cut up his rivals in here will be in trouble. You have been warned. Secondly, the way out. You can come in here after each round, not during a round".

I assumed that meant we could quit after finishing a round. Not that I intended to quit, as I needed to win in order claim the prise money, which I was going to use to fund myself while I looked all over Albion for legendary weapons and armour. Which I would use to fight Jack. I had no intention of going to prison so I would need something to do over the next year until Jack of Blades made his move.

"Hey Roth, it's getting really ugly out there" a guard yelled as he hurried over to us "You better send someone out there to keep the crowd entertained".

The man I now knew to be called, Roth, nodded his head.

"Alright" Roth said with a sigh "Chameleon, you've heard all of this before, so go on out there for the first round and keep the crowd happy".

"No problem" a guy who was roughly the same build as Thunder, said to Roth "This'll be easy".

I figured he'd die. It was gut feeling I had, that or a very distant memory.

"Okay, when it's your turn I'll call your name and you will enter through the door Chameleon just used" Roth explained to the rest of us "Once in the Arena you will battle foes from all over Albion. Every group of creatures you defeat wins you prise money, and increases the prize for the next round. The aim is to stay out there as long as you can to earn the big gold. Now, you can come back here at any time you like to buy potions and what not. Do this, though, and your prize for the next round will be zero. Not to mention the crowd will think you're a big loser. Real Heroes get out there and stay out there!".

The guy with the funny hair still had more to say.

"Whether you rest or not, the Arena Bonus Prize, given by Jack of Blades himself, will go to whoever gets through every single round alive" he told us.

I wondered what would happen if I attacked Jack here at the arena rather than later on. He might not be as powerful now as he was later, or he might be able to destroy me with ease given how tired I would be after fighting my way through so many rounds.

"So when you get out there" Roth was now saying "Use your skills well, make sure the crowd enjoys it and if you have to die, do so bravely".

While the other competitors went to stock up on potions, I sat down. Then I checked my weapons for the tenth time today. I made sure that there was nothing wrong with his bow, and then I tested the edge of my sword before going to make sure I still had all my potions within easy reach.

"Er… Roth, bad news" I then heard a guard say "I think Chameleon's, er, you know, dead".

The guy with the silly hair was not happy.

"What? Already? That idiot!" Roth yelled angrily before addressing those of us who were waiting for our turn to go out and fight "Right, people, it seems Chameleon only made it through one round before dying like a wuss in front of a few thousand people. So we need a new volunteer".

I stood up.

"I'm next" I informed Roth before anyone else could say something "anyone got a problem with that?".

No one did.

"It's your funeral, kid" someone unimportant said.

I wasn't worried. I'd died before.

"Ignore them" said Roth as he walked me over to the gate that led into the arena "Just remember what I said. Fight in as many rounds as you can, and keep the crowd entertained. Oh and don't die".

That sounded simple enough, but it wouldn't be.

"Now, talk to Al up by the door" I was instructed "He'll let you into the Arena".

I nodded.

"Will do" I then said.

Al turned out to be another guard and after making sure I was ready, he allowed me to enter the arena.

(Line Break)

Ladies and gentlemen, the commentator began to say as I entered the arena 'for your entertainment, I give you Gothic, newly graduated from the Heroes Guild.

In fact it hadn't been that long at all since I had finished my education at the Guild. Yet I had done quiet a lot in that short amount of time.

He is famous for quests such as protecting Orchard Farm and saving Knothole Glade from a nasty balverine problem! Like our other brave challengers, this up and coming hopeful has an eye on tonight's grand prize, presented by Jack of Blades himself.

As the crowd cheered, I readied my bow. My plan was to hit a few foes with my ranged weapon before switching to the sword. That way I could keep my Will abilities, which had grown greatly since seeing my sister, unknown to Jack of Blades. I might have to use them later, but I would try to keep them hidden for as long as possible.

And now, we're onto the first round! An old arena favourite… it's the Wasp Horde

I sniggered as I remembered the first time I had faced the wasps. They'd hadn't been such a big deal then, and now I was far more powerful.

As planned I shot a few down with my bow, and when they got too close to fire at I continued the fight with my my magic sword. As expected the creatures weren't much of a threat.

He may be new to the Arena, but he got through round one and is now ready to take on round two. Let's see how he does with this audience favourite. It's the cruel, the smelly… hobbes!'

This time I used only my sword as I had limited number of arrows and enough experience of fighting Hobbs to know that it was best to charge right in and start hacking and slashing. Hobbes didn't organise very well so it was best to keep things chaotic, because if they did get their act together they'd bury me with their sheer numbers.

Thankfully that didn't happen, and once the last of the monsters fell to the ground the bodies faded away. I assumed it was kind of magic that been built into the arena.

Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the team rounds! Two Heroes… side-by-side… fighting together for their very survival.

I figured that the following rounds would be a sight to see as Whisper and I had never fought together, only against each other. We'd both fought Hobbs at Orchard Farm, but we'd been competing rather than working together.

Before she or I could say anything to each other, the Balverines were set lose. While Whisper went and met them in hand to hand combat, I picked them off from a distance with silver tipped arrows. Unfortunately I didn't get them all and one leaped at me.

I reacted by sending surges of electricity through the beast's body. Which led to the commentator going on about my ability to use Will.

It's amazing! It's incredible! Before us is a Hero of two of the three disciplines!

"Three out of three, you mean" I muttered as the last balverine fell to my sword.

I didn't blame the commentator for thinking that I only had the two of the three disciplines. After all I didn't look much like a Hero of Strength although I was very strong for my size and weight.

By now I had reasoned that there was little point hiding my Will Powers as they'd been seen by thousands. Besides Maze had most likely told Jack all about what I could do.

The next round of creatures Whisper and I faced were Hollow Men. To kill these undead creatures I used my Will powers. I sent fireball after fireball at them, then watched as they either burned to ashes, or in some cases they simply exploded. Unlike the Hollow Men I'd faced when being test by Maze, there undead chaps weren't being magically protected. Which was good because even with fire they were not easy to put down. I used my Mana during this found, and I knew it would take a while for it recharge.

Thankfully round five consisted of bandits who been arrested and given a choice between fighting and perhaps dying while in the area or simply being put to death, which made them very eager to kill Whisper and I as it was their only chance at life, but they didn't cause too much hassle, compared to the balverines. They were human, as such blades and arrows could easily pierce their skin, and what they wore as armour was questionable at best.

The massive Earth Troll that Whisper and I had to fight in round six, was a far more dangerous foe.

While I stood some distance away, shooting the troll with the multi arrow spell, Whisper was right in front of her troll and was constantly being knocked about. However, she was doing some damage to the troll

However, the troll was nothing compared to the giant, scorpion-like creature, the Archanox, we had to fight in the last round. Whisper and I even exchanged a nervous look before we attacked it.

I managed to half blind it by shooting out its eyes with my last physical arrow while also using the multi arrow spell, while Whisper hit it with something that exploded, and then I had to fight it up close.

Together, with Whisper's aid I was eventually able to slaughter it, but it had taken a lot of effort. I'd drained my Mana again and if not for the fact that I had a magical blade with augments that made it good at penetrating armour, such as exoskeletons, we would not have won.

We have two winners! the commentator informed the excited crowd. Incredible! So what will happen now? Two winners and only one prize? Well as you know, we have a special guest here today. It's the one, the only… the Hero of Heroes, Jack of Blades!

Then I turned and looked up at the terrace overlooking the arena. Up there was a man, who was not really a man, he was dressed completely in red, also he was hooded and wearing a mask.

"I have returned" he said "After an eternity away from you all, Jack of Blades is back!".

The people cheered.

"This Arena is all that is great in Albion and you all that is worthy in it" Jack was now saying "I am honoured to stand before you again".

There was more cheering. I found this odd because I was under the impression that Jack of Blades was a bad guy, and that people knew this. There was even a saying that went: this kind of joy even Jack can't destroy. Which made him sound like a villain.

"And I have a proposal to mark this occasion; one final round" Jack went on to say "A fight to the death between the two Heroes still standing".

I turned to see Whisper, who had understandably gotten a little nervous.

"The winner will receive a special prize" Jack continued "The loser will have the privilege of dying before you".

That didn't seem like much a privilege to me.

"What do they think they're doing?" Whisper asked of someone "They can't do this!".

The crowd seemed to think otherwise, and I wondered if Jack was influencing them somehow.

"Apparently they can" I said to my fellow Hero.

Whisper then turned to look at me.

"Listen, I'm going to put on a good show, but I'm not killing you" Whisper told me "I can't kill you. You're my best friend".

I nodded, and then raised my sword.

"Well then let's give them a show" I said.

And so we did. Our weapons met in a clash of steel and sparks.

I used one hand to keep her staff away from me, while using the other to throw a few weak fireballs about. Not because I wanted to hit anything, or anyone for that matter, but because fireballs flying about got the attention of the crowd. Also they distracted the people watching from the fact that Whisper and weren't actually trying to kill each other. Not that Jack of Blades would be fooled, but I didn't care about his approval.

When my mana, or whatever it was called, became low the nature of the fight changed.

Whisper charged and she flipped over me. On the way over she landed a foot on my head, which while very annoying didn't do me any harm even though I wasn't wearing a helmet. But it must have looked cool as the crowd made a sound that indicated that they were impressed.

Then I was twisting to the side, which wasn't easy to do in full armour, so that when Whisper tried to jab me with her fancy stick it went wide.

When she tried that again I grabbed the staff, and pulled hard with the intention of bringing Whisper to me so that I could kick her. However after releasing the spear, she drove a fist into my face, which again while annoying didn't really do any harm as I was a lot tougher than I looked.

Now we stood an arm's length away from each other, and I didn't that the crowd was waiting for one of us to commit to some course of action. Whisper moved first. She brought her staff to her hand, using some sort of magic I guessed, and tried to strike me with it.

My enchanted longsword met the blow and I counter attacked, only to have my strike be deflected by her staff.

Then to my complete surprise Whisper threw a bottle of something at the ground, the glass shattered on impact with his dirt, and an explosion sent me to the ground.

I was on my feet in almost an instant, but before I could recover my sword, my arms and legs became busy. I had to use to them to block or divert a lot of punches and kicks.

This went on and on, as while Whisper was very agile, and faster than me since she wasn't wearing metal armour. I could take hits and keep on going.

The sort of stalemate ended when Whisper knocked my feet from under me, but as luck would have it I landed within an easy reach of my sword.

Snatching it up, I was able to deflect Whispers attempts to hit me the head with her staff. Her blows wouldn't haven't killed me, she was trying to knock me, but this was not something I would allow her to do.

Using Force Push I blasted my foe away from me, and had more than enough time to get back on my feet. I even had the chance to go on the offencive.

Whisper parried and blocked furiously, but she couldn't find an opportunity to attack due to the sheer power of my renewed assault.

She was forced to defend herself as I brought my sword down in an overhead chop which Whisper blocked. I kept up the pressure with one hand and then used the other to blast Whisper again with a Force Push, which sent rolling across the arena floor.

As the crowd cheered Whisper managed to climb to her feet, and I noticed that she was leaning heavily on her staff spear.

I knew that it was time to end things. I was in slightly better shape than Whisper, having not gotten knocked around nearly so much during the earlier rounds, but I was tired, sore and badly in need of something to drink.

With this in mind I triggered a Will Power known as Assassin's rush and in flash the tip of my blade rested against her throat.

"Yield" I ordered.

There was tense moment then, when I thought she would try to keep fighting, but it didn't last. She backed away from me and waked out of the arena, making it clear that I had won.

(Line Break)

The Arena.

"But, my dear Lady, it was mere luck!" Thunder was saying when I got back to the prep area "He's nothing but a..."

I had to say something.

"It wasn't luck, Thunder" I said.

Thunder and the 'dear Lady' turned to look at me. The woman had shoulder length blond hair and was wearing a well-fitted, slightly revealing, purple dress.

"Ah, there you are" the woman said me "The Hero they're all talking about, though people are going to talk even more now that you are an arena champion. You've impressed me, and isn't something people do very often".

I'd expected the arena to be more of a challenge in truth. Whisper had been far harder to defeat than most of what I'd fought, and I knew how to fight her.

"But I forget my manners" the woman was now saying "I'm Lady Grey, the Mayor of Bowerstone".

I'd heard of her of course, but I'd never seen her until today.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, my Lady" I said with a polite bow.

She smiled and walked right up to me, and didn't stop until we were merely inches apart. I wasn't sure what to do as I'd had very little to do with the opposite sex, aside from Whisper, and a few serving girls back at the guild who hadn't done much more than kiss me on the cheek and giggle. So I wasn't sure how to talk with a proper lady. I had experience from my last life time, but not with women from the nobility.

"I can see you are a man of worth" Lady Grey said quietly. "You should pay me a visit at my Bowerstone Manor".

Whisper's brother was not happy to hear this.

"My Lady, if I could only..." Thunder began to say.

Lady Grey cut him off.

"Thunder, I am tired of your protests and your jealousy" she informed him.

I was also unhappy with Thunder, however what bothered me was that rather than go check on his sister, who had gotten smacked around in the arena, he was here with Lady Grey.

"Your best days are behind you" Lady Grey went on to say "You should learn to accept that".

She then looked back me and smiled.

"As I was saying, Hero, I do hope you will accept my invitation" the noble woman urged "We have much to discuss".

Again I did my best to bow.

"As you wish, my Lady" I said "I would be honoured".

She smiled and then left the room. I relaxed somewhat once she was gone, but then I was all tense again when Thunder got all up in my face.

"This is not over" he said coldly.

Thunder was scarier than the Archanox had been, and he only smelled slight better than the Troll had.

"New blood spills just like any other" he threatened "and yours will spill soon enough!".

He then marched off, making me feel very small all of a sudden. But that feeling didn't even compare to how I felt when I saw that Jack of Blades was standing behind me.

"Well I suppose we shall have to put your statue next to your mothers" he said.

I didn't reply I was too nervous.

"She was a fine Hero" he said next "More soft hearted than you, she cared more about the people, but her dedication to doing good came at a price. After her final battle she was never the same".

I didn't remember my second mother because I couldn't remember much about the early childhood I'd had in Oakvale. I assumed I'd been reincarnated or something like that, but the only person in that family I'd had any sort of connection with was Theresa. I could remember her from a very young age.

"She lives in complete solitude" Jack was now telling me "She was crushed by her failure to save her family long ago and yet, here you are".

As attempts to wipe out a family go, the attack on Oakvale hadn't been a very successful one.

"I knew her son would end up here one day" the being then said "It's in your blood and in your sister's too. You should bring her to me. I so long to reunite you both with your mother. Just think of the happiness it would bring her".

This wouldn't happen as I had no intention of walking into a trap, to save a woman I barely knew.

"I don't even know where Theresa is" I told Jack.

If Jack of Blades had any kind of power over people's minds it didn't seem to be working on me as I felt no desire to do what he wanted.

"Anyway, this is yours" the bad guy informed me while handing me a decorative object "The Champion Seal. People everywhere will recognise you as the winner in the Arena and it will grant you access to Bowerstone North. Don't lose it. It is rather valuable".

I didn't trust anything that this creature had handled, but I took it anyway and promised myself that I would stash it somewhere rather than carry it around with me.

"Oh I won't lose it" I promised.

With that Jack moved away, and I wondered when it had gotten so cold down here.

(Line Break)

Home - Bowerstone.

The first thing I did upon returning home was to stash The Champion Seal in a chest, in the basement of my house. While I didn't fully understand why I'd wanted to that I figured I had a good reason, something about the Seal just seemed wrong.

"There you are" I then heard Whisper say "I was wondering when you would get home".

I turned to see my fellow Hero, she was sitting at the bottom of the stairs, and she looked grumpy.

"What's the matter with you?" I asked.

I'd spared her life, so she should have been happy.

"Well aside from losing to you again" she said "I'm now your slave for life, or at least until you don't want me in your harem any more".

I was very confused.

"Did you forget about our deal?" Whisper asked before going on to remind me "I said if I made Arena Champion before you did I'd get you for my harem, and I agreed if you won before I did that I would be in yours. Well I lost".

I had forgotten.

"Well I..." I started to say.

Whisper stood up, and gave me a very angry look.

"Don't you go backing out of it now" she said "I wouldn't have let you get out of our deal. If I'd won you'd already be rubbing my feet, and then some some other parts".

Knowing her as I did I was sure that she wouldn't have let me off.

"How many women other than me have you had sex with?" Whisper then said.

I felt compelled to tell her.

"Zero" I admitted.

Not counting the nymph.

"I've been busy" I then added "Its been non-stop since I graduated, and before that you made sure none of the other girls came near me".

Not that I'd minded that much.

"Oh your poor farm boy" Whisper was now saying "I should take you to the Bordello, or we could tag team a tavern wench. See how that goes".

Whores weren't really my thing, but a drink sounded nice and if it led somewhere that involved two young ladies in bed with me then that was fine.

"Well I'm planning to go off and look for some of those legendary weapons" I informed my fellow Hero "You're welcome to tag along".

Whisper smiled at me.

"I'm pretty much your slave now" she said "Just do me one favour and don't tell Thunder about this. Its bad enough I lost in the arena".

That request I would grant.

"Okay let's go for a drink, or ten" I decided.

I would go to see Lady Grey before I left, but that could wait until tomorrow.


	11. Chapter 11

Hero Gothic 1

Part 11

House. Bowerstone.

"I suggest you go and see Lady Grey" Whisper advised as we ate breakfast together "She'll be very unhappy if you do as she asked".

This idea was met with a complete lack of enthusiasm.

"I'll go see her before we leave" I told Whisper "We've got a lot to do before we go. I want to make sure that we both have the best equipment that money can buy and as much in the way of supplies as we can carry. I don't intend to be back for a year".

Plus there was something else I needed to do. I wanted to rent my house out so that when I got back I'd get some money from the rent, and someone would be around to keep the house in order.

"She is the Mayor of Bowerstone, farm boy" Whisper reminded me "She expects people to make time for her".

Whisper was never going to stop calling me farm boy, I had to simply accept that, or I could cut out her tongue, but that would be a tad excessive.

"Okay, I'll go see her now" I said with a groan.

I didn't want to see Lady Grey, as I didn't feel comfortable around her.

"And take her a gift" my sort of girlfriend advised.

I groaned again.

"Fine I'll pick up some flowers on the way" I said as I headed out the door.

Whisper had yet more advice.

"Buy her some black rose!" she yelled "I hear that's her favourite".

And I didn't doubt that they were the most expensive flowers in all of Albion. Just thinking about that made me glad that I won a lot of cash prizes for fighting through so many rounds in the arena.

As I left the house the dog tried to follow me, but I had no idea if Lady Grey would be offended by Oggy's presence so I told him to go stay with Whisper. Which he went and did.

"Hey, those are my socks!" I heard my fellow Hero shout out "let them go you mutt".

I had to laugh.

(Line Break)

After buying half a dozen black roses I made my way to Lady Grey's mansion. As I walked around the town many citizens of Bowerstone stopped to praised me on my victory at the arena. It made me blush because while I'd been thanked for doing heroic things in the past, it had never been like this. People had gone from merely respecting me to admiring me greatly, it was a little overwhelming.

When I arrived at the mansion, I nervously knocked on the door as I didn't know what to expect. Despite all my recent adventures I wasn't that experienced when it came to life outside the guild, as such I wasn't really sure how to behave around the nobility.

A maid eventually opened the door, she invited me inside and led me to a sitting room, before going off to get the Mayor. I stood there admiring the finery while waiting for Lady Grey to enter the room.

"My Lady" I greeted with a small bow "I brought you these".

I couldn't see how giving a woman flowers could go wrong, so I handed her the black roses, which she accepted with a sight smile.

"They are beautiful" she said before handing them over to the maid.

I assumed the serving girl would put them in a vase or whatever.

"Now come, sit with me" Lady Grey then invited.

I sat on the couch next to her, and soon found myself sitting uncomfortably close to a woman I barely knew.

"We need real Heroes like you in Albion" the noble woman was now saying "Heroes who are brave, powerful, helpful, and good-looking".

Lady Grey must have noticed that I didn't deal with women very well, as she seemed to be amused by me.

"Tell me, Gothic, do you have a girlfriend?' she asked.

I shook my head, and then realised that Whisper might count as a girlfriend if not for the fact that she would never let me call her that. She might possibly be the start of a harem, but she was still Whisper, and therefore not very easy to deal with or to categorise.

"You know I still haven't been able to find the right man to marry" the lady said.

Before I could comment on this the noble woman then ordered a maid to bring us some tea.

"Do you have any siblings?" was Lady Grey's next question.

I nodded, and then gave a more detailed answer.

"Yes, I've got an older sister" I said "She's called Theresa".

The woman nodded as if this just confirmed what she already knew.

"Then we have something in common" Lady Grey then informed me "I am the youngest of my family. I had an older sister called Amanda. She was such a kind hearted girl. She went missing the year I became Mayor, in fact it was because of her disappearance that I became Mayor".

I wouldn't be at all surprised if she'd killed her sister in order to become mayor.

"Would you do for a favour?" Lady Grey asked me "Would you be able to find my necklace for me? It is most precious".

That seemed harmless enough.

"Sure, I can do that" I said.

This greatly pleased the lady, although I had no idea how I would find her necklace, or if I would even bother to try.

"Thank you" the woman replied "Perhaps you could investigate around town, later on. Someone must know its whereabouts".

The tea service soon arrived, and the conversation turned to matter of no real importance.

(Line Break)

Once I left Lady Grey's house I went home and found that Whisper wasn't there, which was annoying as we were suppose to sorting out our supplies. Since I didn't know when she'd be back I decided to start seeking information on the necklace I was suppose to find.

While asking around I started wondering if Lady Grey was an evil witch or just a manipulative bitch, because now that she wasn't around I couldn't understand why I was doing her any favours. I felt no attraction towards the woman, in fact she repulsed me a little.

I soon learned that the necklace I sought was in fact Amanda Grey's necklace, Lady Grey's sister and that the mayor had gotten her hands on the necklace it when her sister went missing.

After talking to a few guards and villagers , I learned of two men who had been acting suspicious around the time of the necklace's disappearance. I managed to track the men down in the Oakvale Memorial Gardens where I overheard them talking about where they had stashed the necklace. As it turned out they'd hid it in between two boats down at the Oakvale docks.

So I headed for the docks and uncovered it, before going to the local guards and telling them about the men's crime.

(Line Break)

In the later afternoon I returned to Lady Grey with the item she had requested me to recover.

"Here is your necklace, my Lady" I informed the noble.

Without delay I handed it over.

"I don't believe it!' she said, happily "I thought I'd never see it again! Please, help me put it on".

She took it out of the box and handed it to me, before turning around. I awkwardly undid the clip and then clipped it around her neck.

"The two men who stole it have been arrested" I then informed her ladyship.

This also seemed to please her.

"You really are a wonderful Hero" Lady Grey praised "and you would make a wonderful husband to any woman, including me. I shall expect a proposal from you in a weeks' time… until then".

She then walked away, and I was left wondering what the hell had just happened.

(Line Break)

The Guild.

"You look troubled" the Guildmaster said when I arrived at the Heroes Guild "Is there something wrong?"

I'd come here looking for Whisper, but I'd run into the old man seconds after arriving.

"Lady Grey wants me to propose to her" I told my mentor "Apparently she thinks I'd make a good husband".

Which was sort of flattering, or at least it would have been if the words had been spoken by a woman I wanted to marry.

"I don't see the problem" the Guild Master.

The sigh I let lose sort of explained the issue.

"Listen, my boy" the old man was now saying "You are almost seventeen years old, it's time you started thinking about the future".

I'd long since forgotten my age, and I was surprised to hear that I was only sixteen. In my last life I'd still be a child in the eyes of many, but here I was an adult who needed to give serious thought to getting a wife and having some children.

"Marrying Lady Grey would be good for you" my old teacher was saying "She has money, power, respect, and she is beautiful. There aren't many women out there like her. Besides, if you don't, she could have you arrested, which would destroy your future".

Those were not good reasons to marry someone, I knew that people in Albion tended to wed for more practical reasons, but it seemed wrong to me.

"But I don't love her! I don't even like her for that matter" I argued.

In fact I was becoming increasingly sure that Lady Grey had murdered her sister in order to climb the social ladder, and that if we married she'd kill me if a more famous potential husband came along.

"You need to do what is best for you" the Guild Master advised me "Who do you want to marry?".

If I had to get married, there was only one woman I would even dare to ask, and she would hit me with her staff.

"Have you seen Whisper?" I then asked the old man.

He pointed towards the gardens.

"She's out in the training grounds" he told me "She's still determined to beat you one day".

I thanked the Guild Master and headed out to the training grounds. I found Whisper attacking a poor dummy with all her might, and for once I was very glad that I was not in the ring with her.

"You know if we ever attacked my straw men I'm just going to leave them to you" I told my long term friend "they wouldn't stand a chance".

She stopped beating on the poor dummy and turned to look at me.

"One day I'll be able to beat you, farm boy" she said with a grin as she walked over to me "So what are you doing here? I thought you'd be off proposing to Lady Grey".

I checked her expression to see how she felt about that, but sometimes she was very good at hiding her feelings.

"How'd you know about that?" I asked "She only just told me that I should propose".

Whisper smiled at me again.

"Oh farm boy, you're the most talked about person in Albion" she told me "Nothing is a secret when you're involved, and everyone knows that Lady Grey has been looking for a suitable husband".

I sighed, and Whisper came and sat next to me on the wall.

"We'll have to be careful" she then said "But a deal's a deal. I'll be your mistress".

That hadn't actually been a concern of mine.

"I'd rather marry you" I told Whisper.

That made her laugh.

"Oh no you're not going to stick me on a farm somewhere" she said "I don't want to end up raising your children all by myself while you run around having adventures".

That didn't sound horrible to me, but I could understand why she wouldn't like that.

"I know what'll cheer you up" I heard Whisper say "Let's go into the woods like we used to when we were kids".

Considering that we'd last done that a few months it shouldn't seem like something I'd done as a boy, but it sure felt that way.

(Line Break)

Guild Woods.

Without saying anything I pushed Whisper up against a tree and planted my mouth over hers. Soon I felt her fingers feeling my dick through my trousers, for once I wasn't wearing armour, and even with that distraction I was able push my tongue between her lips to french kiss her. This only made her hands work faster on my crotch.

Whisper pushed me off her and for a moment I thought something was wrong, but all did was pull up her top so that I could see her breasts.

As I so often had before I started kissing them and sucking in her nipples, she pushed her hand into my trousers and I felt the skin of her hand against the skin of my dick I stopped kissing and saw the triumph in her eyes.

"I knew you wouldn't fuck me" she said with a smile "as soon as I start rubbing your such a good farm boy for me".

That might have been true when we were still students, but I was an arena champion now. I wasn't going to let her decide how she pleasured me. She'd lost the bet, so now she belonged to me.

With that in mind I pushed her down to the grass and started to undress her. All the while we said nothing, she never asked my to stop, and I didn't give a damn about any consequences of what I was doing.

When I shoved my dick into her I relished the wonderful feeling of her cunt as it wrapped around me with warm wet flesh. She was just aroused as I was and more than ready for me. But I didn't really care about that all I did care about was that she felt good to shag.

I started fucking her rather frantically and she started moaning, and she wrapped her legs around my hips. I didn't last that long, as I didn't care to, and soon I filled her with my seed, and she kept her legs around me until I went soft while still inside her. Only then did we separate and I laid on the ground next to her.

We stayed like that for a while afterwards, and I wondered if I'd gone too far, but not for long as she reached over and pulled me to her in order to give me one more long passionate kiss.

"Now you've finally grown up" Whisper said as we sorted out our clothes "I was wondering when you start acting like a man".

I was very offended to hear that and felt the need to say something.

"I didn't know you wanted me to take charge" I told her "You started jerking me off before I was really interested in girls, and I really liked it. Anyway I didn't want to pressure you into doing more in case it ruined our friendship".

Plus after graduating I'd been really, really busy.

"You're sweet" said Whisper "and I never minded looking after you, but remember your a man now, and a Hero too. You can take what you want".

That was true I could just take what I wanted, and to a certain extent I could do whatever I wanted.

"Okay let's go find out if Lady Grey killed her sister" I decided "and if she didn't then we need to trick your brother into marrying her".

Whisper found that funny.

"You're still not marrying me" she insisted "I'm not going to sit at home with a bunch of screaming brats while you go out and have fun".

Now I was amused.

"We'll see" I said.

(Line Break)

Bowerstone.

"Avo is a kind god" the man behind bars was now saying "He would never allow someone as pure as you, Hero, to marry that witch"

Whisper and I exchanged glances and then looked at the glum prisoner. I'd never called pure before. I wasn't exactly evil, but I'd slaughtered more people than I'd had conversations with. Heck I'd killed three people before I'd even lost my virginity.

"Err yeah" I said to one of the men who'd been arrested for stealing the necklace "I just wanted to ask some questions".

The prisoner was hard to talk to because he was very upset.

"The Mayor's having me executed" said the prisoner "all because I asked too many questions".

He was a thief, but killing him over it seemed excessive.

"So she's executing you because you merely were asking questions?' Whisper asked.

The man behind bars was barely holding back tears at his point.

"She is a demon, and no one will believe me" he said.

While I was sure that Lady Grey was an evil bitch, I did think she was human.

"Her sister was an angel" the condemned man went on to say "She would have made a wonderful Mayor, and I know Lady Grey killed her!".

I was sure that she had, but I needed hard evidence to get the guards on my side before I took any action. Failing that I would have to find a way to get her to marry Thunder, because I sure as hell wasn't going to do it.

"Do you have any proof of your accusation?" I asked.

I doubted that since he was in a cell, but he might at least be able to point me in the right direction.

"No, but I know that she did" the prisoner replied "You have to help me prove it, Hero! If you don't, Bowerstone will remain in her clutches, I'll be executed, and you will be married to a demon, who will probably kill you once she grows tired of you!".

That was my concern also. Well not the town being in her clutches part, the being killed by a evil bitch part.

"What do you think?" I asked Whisper

We moved away from the cells before she answered me.

"I think you should go with your original plan" she said.

Which was to get Thunder to marry Lady Grey. This would be accomplished by letting him kick my ass in fight. He might kill me, but I doubted it if Whisper went and asked not to pound me into a sticky paste for her sake.

"But what if he's right?" I asked her "What if she is responsible for Amanda Grey's death, and what if she kills your brother?".

Whisper sighed.

"Well we best find out everything we can, and I guess someone's got to keep you out of trouble" she then said "You're really lucky I still think you're cute because this goes way beyond the whole harem deal".

After thanking Whisper I went back over to the cell

"So how do you prove that the mayor killed her sister" I asked the prisoner "Do you have any ideas?".

He better do because I sure didn't.

"All you need to do is get her dead sister to tell you what really happened" said the prisoner. "Amanda had a sweetheart called Rhodri. He's a nice guy".

I had another question.

"Any idea where to him" I asked.

It pleased me to find out that he did.

"He usually hangs out in Barrow Fields" the guy behind bars told me "If anyone knows how to entice her out of oblivion, it's him".

Back on the world I'd used to live in that would have sounded totally nuts, but here ghosts were a fact of life, and sometimes they even tried to kill you, or they gave you quests. It depended on the spirit.

(Line Break)

Barrow Fields.

After a bit of asking around, and using a Cullis Gate, Whisper, my dog and I found Rhodri hanging around a outside Demon Door.

"Are you Rhodri?" I asked as we approached the man.

He seemed surprised by my use of his name.

"Hold on. Aren't you the Hero of Oakvale?" he question "And aren't you Whisper, the Hero of Oakvale's lover?".

Well she could be described that way. Not that I would be stupid enough to call her that.

"Where did you hear that?" Whisper demanded to know.

She soon got an answer.

"Well that's what everyone was saying after he spared your life in the Arena" Rhodri told us.

That made some sense.

"Yes, well anyway, the reason we are here is because we were told that you knew Amanda Grey" I said the man "Is that true?".

The sad expression on his face confirmed it to be so.

"Yes, it is" Rhodri replied sadly "I think about her all the time. She was so beautiful, so pure. She was afraid that her sister would find out about us and use our love against her, stopping her from becoming Mayor. I'm no noble after all".

That didn't seem right given that I wasn't a noble, and given that Ablion wasn't even a proper nation, it also seemed odd that anyone could count as nobility. Albion was nothing more than a lose confederation of cites, towns and villages which traded with each other.

"So how did you see each other?" Whisper asked curiously "Did you have to sneak about?".

Again the man soon answered her.

"We'd meet in secret in the cellar of Grey House" he told us "I would sneak out to the stables and flash my lamp three times to let her know I was there".

That could be a way to summon Amanda's Grey ghost, but we would need more than just a dead person's words in order overthrow the mayor.

"Do you know what happened to her?" I enquired.

This subject was paining the man, I could see it in his eyes, but we needed to know.

"Yes, I do. One night she didn't come out, and I found the cellar door locked" he informed us "Her sister, Elvira, or Lady Grey as she's now known, told me she had died of some terrible illness. I never even got to say goodbye"

Rhodri then collapsed to his knees and cried. It was obvious that he had loved Amanda deeply.

"Thank you for your help, Rhodri" I said softy.

I then led Oggy and Whisper away so that the man could grieve in peace.

"If Amanda died of an illness, then why did Lady Grey tell me her sister went missing?" I wondered.

I was now more certain than ever of foul play.

"Maybe we should go to the Grey House and investigate?" Whisper suggested.

I pondered things for a moment.

"Meet me in the stables at nightfall" I instructed Whisper "I'll go fetch a lantern".

My fellow Hero quickly caught on to my plan.

"Oh clever, farm boy" she praised.

She was never, ever, ever going to stop calling me that.

(Line Break)

Grey House

"Over here" I said to Whisper when I saw her enter the stables.

I flashed the lantern I'd picked up earlier three times. At first, nothing happened, but then we saw the ghost of a young woman walk out of the house, before going down into the cellar.

"That was one of the weirdest thing I have ever seen" Whisper commented.

I smiled.

"Not long ago I met a ghost pirate who wanted me to give his hidden treasure to his wife" I told my fellow Hero "Now that was weird".

Rather than exchange more words we silently entered the cellar and started to look around. When we found the ghost I saw that she was looking down at a skeleton that was leaning against some barrels.

"Rhodri, is that you?" the dead woman asked

The ghost turned around before answering her own question.

"Oh, you're not Rhodri" she said sadly "I prayed that he would rescue me, but he never came".

He hadn't known she needed saving.

"Is that you?" Whisper asked "The skeleton I mean".

Which was a very strange question to hear someone say.

"Yes, that's me" the ghost confirmed "When the air ran out down here, I closed my eyes and imagined I was dying in Rhodri's arms".

I found myself becoming angry.

"So you didn't die of an illness, or go missing" I said "You became trapped down here and suffocated".

That was not a nice way to die. Not there were many good ways to snuff it.

"Whoever told you that I died of an illness?" Amanda asked curiously.

It wasn't me who told her.

"Your sister told Rhodri that when he came to visit, and you never showed up" Whisper answered "She told him that you had died of a terrible illness. He was heartbroken. Still is really".

The ghost became a little angry.

"That does not surprise me" Amanda said.

I moved back a little as the skeleton's hand was raised up.

"People must know the truth about Elvira" the ghost said "Take this letter and tell the world what really happened".

Amanda then disappeared and I recovered the piece of paper.

"I can't believe she killed her own sister" Whisper was now saying "And to think you might have married her, or she might have been my sister-in-law if she'd married Thunder".

We then turned to leave, only to find Elvira Grey blocking our way out.

"So, now you know the truth" she said coldly.

Whisper was not happy to see the lady, and neither was I for that matter. Even Oggy growled to express his displeasure.

"How could you?" Whisper demanded to know "How could you kill your own sister?".

I had a sister, and while we weren't close I could never harm her.

"Amanda was a weak, romantic fool" Lady Grey said to us "She didn't have what it takes to run Bowerstone. She would have turned the whole place into an egalitarian slum".

I didn't know why that would be a bad thing. Society needed to be more fair.

"So you killed her" I said "Seems excessive to me".

She could have used blackmail against her sister, that would have been less needlessly evil.

"My dear, if you were given the choice to choose power over your sister, you would choose power" Lady Grey stated.

Hopefully when that time came I wouldn't.

"We're going to expose you for what you really are!" Whisper declared.

The noble lady didn't seem worried.

"But you wouldn't do that to me, would you, Gothic" Lady Grey said, with a rather seductive smile "Wouldn't you like to be married to the mayor?".

It wasn't at all tempting.

"Think of the power" she was now saying "it can all be yours. You just need to hand over the letter".

I shook my head.

"No thanks" I told the noble.

Me saying that made her very upset.

"No one refuses Lady Grey" she yelled "No one!".

Then followed some villain ranting.

"You're just like the rest of those imbeciles, infecting my city like vermin" Lady Grey said "Tell everyone, if you want. See if I care. Have your moment of glory. But know this; I will return one day, and I will wash away all the filth with your blood. Remember that!".

When the evil bitch turned to run I triggered Assassin's Rush, so that I catch her, only something hit me and I fell down the cellar's steps. When things stopped being a blur I found that my face had somehow ended up between Whisper's legs.

"You can do that later, farm boy" Whisper said "Like when were not trapped in a cellar that's air tight".

This at least wasn't a concern. I just charged up powerful Force Push and blasted the cellar door off its hinges.

"Do you think you should take her threat seriously?" Whisper asked as we exited the cellar.

I did not.

"Nah, she was just being a drama queen" I replied "Besides, you're way scarier than she is".

Whisper laughed, and then frowned.

"Wait did you just insult me?" she asked.

Wisely I didn't reply.

"Oh you better be planning to put your head between my legs" she huffed.

Actually I figured she'd be using her mouth to pleasure me, but we could discuss that later.

(Line Break)

Bowerstone Jail.

When we arrived at prison we sought out the man in charge as I didn't want that poor bloke we'd spoken to earlier to be hung for no good reason.

"Hello, Heroes" the sheriff greeted "What can I do for you?".

Hopefully he'd be doing something important very soon.

"Here is a letter written by Amanda before she died" I told the Sheriff "You should read it".

The sheriff took the letter and quickly read over it. As he did this his face went from mildly happy to very unhappy.

"Its almost unbelievable" the Sheriff said "So Gethyn was right all along. I suppose we'd better release him".

I assumed that Gethyn was the man I'd spoken to earlier, who had been one of the men who had stolen the necklace from Lady Grey, which had once belonged to her sister. Looking back it seemed as Gethyn must have taken in the necklace as part of some plan to prove Lady Grey was evil. Although I couldn't see how unless he'd been planning to summon Amanda's ghost with it.

"That would be for the best" I agreed "We all him a big apology".

Maybe I'd have a nice pie baked for him. He had to be hungry after only having prison food to eat.

"We'll have to find a new Mayor" the sheriff was now saying "I don't suppose you'd be interested in the job? You have proved your worth after all".

I was surprised to hear this.

"You want me as your Mayor?" I asked, not quite sure if I'd heard that right "as in me running the city".

I didn't want to be mayor. It was a petty dream for someone like me. I could be king of Albion given enough time and resources, perhaps one day I would be.

"He'd love to be your Mayor!' Whisper declared.

I gave her a glare of doom, but she ignored it.

"Excellent!" the sheriff said "I will have an arrest warrant put out for the former mayor and the town crier will declare you as the new mayor first thing in the morning".

Long before there had been newspapers and television, news had been delivered by a town crier, a man who would wander around ringing a bell and then yell out important news.

"Where's your dog?" Whisper said, no doubt wanting to change the subject.

I looked around and realised that my faithful hound was not at my side. I called out his name and moments later we all heard a woman screaming, and then we saw my dog dragging Lady Grey, by her ankle, towards the sheriff.

"Well so much for warrant" the sheriff said "Maybe your mutt should be mayor".

He'd probably do a better job.

(Line Break)

Heroes Guild.

'What's going on?' the Guildmaster asked.

My shouting at Whisper much have gotten the old man's attention because not moments after we had arrived he had joined us in the map room.

"Whisper and I have just exposed the fact that Lady Grey murdered her sister in order to become mayor of Bowerstone" I told my teacher.

"And Gothic is about to become mayor" Whisper informed the Guildmaster

I glared at her. It had no effect.

"That's wonderful" said the old man "Congratulations, my boy. I'm sure your parents would be proud".

I sighed.

"Does anyone care that I don't want to be Mayor?" I wondered "or that I'm not at all qualified for the job".

My old teacher did, at least a little.

"You should take the job and assign someone more knowledgeable about the city than you as Deputy Mayor" the Guildmaster suggest "then after a while, if things have settled you can hand over the reigns to the Deputy Mayor, or you may even find you're very good at the job".

Whisper also had something to say.

"And now you have a proper house and a proper job you can ask me to marry you" she said "If you really meant it earlier".

Now I was wondering if Whisper was just as evil as Lady Grey, or maybe it was all women who were demons in disguise.


	12. Chapter 12

Hero Gothic 1

Part 12

One Year Later.

Manor House. Bowerstone.

"Milord" said the maid "There is someone here to see you".

I looked up from the book I'd been reading, and saw Whisper, who was knitting something for the baby we would soon have. Even after being married for nearly a year I still found in strange to see Whisper dressed as a lady.

As it had turned out while she had not wanted to raise children on a farm, she didn't mind having kids with a man who had a big house, servants, and a well paying job. Which was sensible of her.

Only once I finished looking at my wife did I pay attention to the serving girl.

"Its a little late for visitors" I commented.

As Mayor of Bowerstone, father to be, husband, and part time Hero, I didn't get a lot of time to sit around at home, so when I got the chance I didn't take kindly to be bothered.

"Tell them to come back in the morning" I said.

The maid left, but soon returned, chasing after a roughly dressed woman who had barged her way into the house.

"Well, looks like you didn't turn out to badly after all" the woman said before rapidly changing the subject "Now listen, Jack is getting closer to the Sword I can feel it. He needs a Key to unlock the Sword from its hiding place and now he knows where it is".

Whisper and I exchanged looks.

"And you are?" I asked.

The women seemed shocked.

"I'm your MOTHER" she stated.

My only reaction was to raise an eyebrow.

"I thought you were an orphan" said Whisper.

Well I was. More or less, but that was not something I wanted to discuss.

"Who are you?" my uninvited guest asked as my wife.

Whisper stood up, and even though she was wearing one of those fancy dresses she started putting on since becoming a lady, it was clear that she was pregnant.

"I'm his wife" she told the woman who claimed to be mother "Your daughter-in-law. I'm Whisper".

The woman reacted to the name.

"Thunder's little sister" she said "I haven't seen you since you were a baby, and now you're having your own children. Where did the years go".

I decided to move things along.

"So where is this key?" I asked as I put my book down.

My uninvited guest soon told me.

"The key is in Hook Coast, hidden in the ruins of an old abbey. Now we have one advantage. He doesn't know the key will only make itself known to one of our bloodline. That's why we have to find your sister. As long as she's out there Jack could use her" she said. "You should go to Darkwood and investigate the portal. There must be some way of activating it. It's the only way to get to Hook Coast but first I have a gift for you. There's power in your blood that hasn't been tapped yet"

My mother held out her hands and green light formed around me. It was an intense experience, only sightly less enjoyable than when Theresa had done it.

"Feels good, doesn't it? From now on I will be able to talk to you through you Guild Seal now go. I will try to find Theresa" the woman said before walking away.

I was just able to stand when I heard the front door close.

"So that was Scarlet Robe" said Whisper once she was sure I was okay "and she's my mother-in-law, that is so cool".

Well at least someone was happy about the family reunion.

(Line Break)

The Hook Coast

Is something wrong dear.

I almost jumped into the air upon mother's voice in my head. I was somewhat used to the Guildmaster talking to me this way, but only just.

"There's a magical barrier blocking the entrance to the Abby" I reported.

Huh, that magical barrier wasn't there before, though it explains what I just found in the Guild.

"You're at the Guild?" I asked.

I was surprised to hear that as she was supposed to be looking for my sister, but I soon realised that I shouldn't have been shocked as I couldn't recall Scarlet Robes even being around during my days before joining the guild. Besides if Thereasa didn't want to be found she wouldn't be.

Yes. I need you to meet me in Maze's quarters.

"What are you doing in there!" I said in alarm "Does Maze know that you are in his quarters?".

I knew that Maze served Jack of Blades in some way, so if the Will User found her Scarlet in his quarters he would hand her over to Jack.

Just meet me there. I found a book that will help.

"Okay, I'm on my way" I said teleporting back to the Guild.

(Line Break)

Heroes Guild.

Arriving in the the map room I decided to sneak into Maze's room without the Guildmaster knowing. Only it didn't work, as ever he seemed to sense my presence the moment I entered the map room. I wondered if he ever slept. I also wondered how often he use my Guild Seal to track me.

"Your mother is here" my teacher said.

I ignored him and raced to Maze's quarters, hoping that I was not too late. When I entered the chamber I saw two strange creatures holding onto Scarlet.

"The book! Don't forget the book!" she shouted.

Before I could do anything the creatures' teleported her away. I wasn't that bothered, as she was pretty much a stranger to me, so instead of crying or anything like that I started looking around for that book she had mentioned. I only found one that wasn't in a pile on a shelf, so I assumed it was correct book.

Upon examining the book I found that it was written in a language. Without any other options I took it to the Guildmaster, hoping that either he could read it or direct me towards someone who was able to.

"Jack has captured my mother again" I informed the older man glumly.

I was a bit bummed about it even I wasn't exactly sad.

"Oh my boy I am sorry to hear that" the Guildmaster replied softly "I spoke to her briefly today. She told me all about your quest, the Sword and the existence of a key meant to unlock it".

Which may have been a very foolish thing to do as my old mentor might also have sided with Jack.

"You continue with your quest" the Guildmaster was now saying "Your mother was right. Jack can never be allowed to succeed. You must stop him getting the key".

That sounded a lot simpler than it actually was.

"There's a magic barrier preventing me from entering the abbey" I told my teacher "My mother said this book would help, but I don't understand the language".

I opened the book on the marked page and handed it to the Guildmaster, who began reading it.

"Yes I can translate this" he told me "Now go to barrier at the Hook Coast Abbey, I shall contact you on your Guild Seal when you arrive. Now go".

(Line Break)

The Hook Coast

When I arrived back at the barricade. I informed the Guildmaster of my arrival, who then instructed me to chant something in another language. Whatever I had just said worked and the barrier had disappeared.

I immediately entered only to find someone had beaten me inside. Somehow.

"Hello, Maze" I said.

Maze turned around to face me.

"Gothic you're here" he said while looking nervously around "I'd have thought you'd be at home with your wife".

I would have preferred to be as the baby was due any day now, but I had to save the world from Jack of Blades, then I could worry about the real challenge of my life: fatherhood.

"So what are you doing here?" I asked, while trying to sound as I wasn't aware that he was betraying me "and how did you get past the barrier?".

Before he could say anything in reply I looked past Maze to see what he was doing. Behind the Will User was a dome shaped barrier of some sort, and inside was trapped a young woman. Whom I soon recognised.

"Theresa!" I shouted.

She was sitting down, looking as though she was either in pain or praying to a higher power.

"I had to contain her" Maze said, sounding frantic "Jack is somehow controlling her. That's why I'm here. I'm trying to stop him".

I took out my magical sword and prepared to attack. Not that it mattered, as suddenly another magical dome appeared, and I was stuck inside it.

"Finish the ritual, Maze!" I heard Jack order "I'd like my key now".

I couldn't see the bad guy, but that didn't matter right now as I needed to get out of this dome.

"It's almost over" Maze informed his master "and it will be easier with the boy here".

Then there was dark laughter in the air.

"Indeed it will" Jack agreed.

The change in the voice told me that the bad guy was now here, or that he had been here all along and was now close to be heard so clearly. However I still didn't see him because as soon as I turned around Maze began his ritual and things became very painful for me, and I blacked out.

(Line Break)

"Finally, the Septimal Key" I heard Jack say as I picked myself up off the ground "You've hidden from me for too long".

I then saw Jack of Blades, but I was too hurt to do anything about it.

"Take those two to the Chamber" Jack ordered "I shall be there soon".

I called upon my Will Powers and began healing myself.

"Yes, sir" Maze replied as Jack disappeared with the Key.

I was now on my feet, and once again trying to figure out how to blast apart this dome. A powerful Force Push should do it, but I would need a few seconds to charge up such an attack and it would tricky to do it without being noticed.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked Maze "Why serve Jack, that's the part I could never figure out. He's really not that impressive".

The Will User didn't agree.

"Only an idiot would oppose Jack" Maze replied as he walked over to me

That was when the barrier dropped on its own, and Maze and I were both very surprised.

"Stop him" I heard my sister cry out.

I unleashed the Force Push I'd planned to use on the barrier upon Maze and sent him flying across the old abbey. He hit the wall so hard that he not been a Hero it would have broken his spine or maybe his neck.

"You cannot win" said the Will User as he got to his feet "The world belongs to Jack now".

Before I killed him I had other questions I had to ask.

"Why did you spare my life all those years ago" I asked Maze "You didn't find me by accident. You were looking for me. I think you even led the attack, so why didn't you just kill me?"

That was what confused me the most. Maze had to have at least known about the attack in advance to have arrived so soon after it happened. But if he'd wanted to wipe out my family he could have done it.

Clearly the bandit raid had been something he'd planned as a cover so that no one would suspect Maze of being behind a plan to wipe out my family, but it didn't serve his interests for me to become a powerful Hero, so he should have just killed me.

"At the time it was because I felt sorry for you" Maze said "but Jack was glad that I spared your life. You have been most useful. You managed to get your sister and the Archaeologist out of hiding for us, and you helped with the ritual. Even if it was unwillingly".

I really loathed being used.

"So now that my usefulness has expired, are you going to try to kill me?" I asked.

Try would be the operative word.

"No" Maze replied "Jack still needs your help. Will you come willingly?".

I shook my head and Maze closed his eyes with a sigh, before attacking me I only just managed to conjure a shield in time. Then, just as Maze was about to attack again, I sent a fireball at him. Which he was met by one his own defencive spells.

Next Maze summoned up some spirits. By the looks of things a lot of monks had died in this place, and judging by the ghostly weapons they carried they had been killed in battle. Most likely while defending the abbey.

I blasted the raised spirits with lightening that went from enemy to enemy as it leaped around the room. I had plenty of mana so this was easy to do.

"You've grown strong" Maze stated "but not strong enough to defeat Jack".

The Will User then conjured up lots of blades, which he sent at me. I slowed the passage of time, and then batted the summoned weapons away from myself with my magical sword.

Next Maze brought fourth a lot of fire, but rather than send it at me he moved his hands around in an odd way and the fire took shape, becoming somewhat dragon like in appearance.

At this point I had no idea what do as I had spell of my own to counter something like this, all I could do was bring up a barrier and try to survive to the intense heat.

Which thankfully I did, thanks to my shield, and the flames faded away. When that happened I saw Maze's expression, he hadn't expected me to still be standing after that attack.

Then to my dismay the wizard began to teleport away, but just before he vanished I slowed down the flow of time and zapped Maze with a lightening bolt.

"I didn't know I could do that" I said to myself.

Next I went over to Maze, who was hurt but still alive. I took out my sword and pressed it hard enough into his chest that it hurt, but didn't really do any damage.

"Tell me Jack's plan and I'll kill you quickly" I told the wizard.

To my surprise he did just that.

"He going to use the Key to activate Focus Sites all over Albion" Maze told me "Then, the Sword will be his and no one will be able to stop him, but they'll try and it will get them all killed".

He then gasped out his last breath, and I stood there staring down at the face of the man who had pretty much been my version of Albus Dumbledore, he'd guided my life from a far, and used for his own ends.

Still it was tempting to kick the body a bit I had other things to do.

"Gothic!" I heard my sister shout.

I turned and saw the blind seer as she was grabbed by two strange creatures, which like those who had taken Scarlet Robe early.

Without thinking I activated Assassins rush, but I only ended up blurring through thin as the creatures vanished.

After swearing up a storm, for being so stupid as to not alter the flow of time, I used my Seal to teleport myself back to the Guild.

(Line Break)

Heroes Guild.

When I arrived I found the Guildmaster anxiously waiting for me, and lots of people rushing around.

'Good, you're back" my teacher said "Things are far worse than I had feared. Maze's betrayal surprised us all, but we have bigger problems".

I could guess as to what those were.

"Jack is activating the Focus Sites. You need to join the other Heroes in stopping him at all costs" the Guildmaster said firmly "Go to Witchwood immediately. I'll explain more when I can".

I nodded and used the Cullis Gate to teleport to Witchwood

(Line Break)

Witchwood.

Briar Rose was waiting for me when I arrived, and it looked as if she needed the help. All around her were many kinds of strange creatures.

I took out my sword and waved my left hand which slowed down time. Then I triggered Assassins Rush which allowed me to cut down the monsters while they moved in super slow motion.

When time went back to normally all the remained of the enemy were the corpses scattered all down the road. From another person's perspective it must have looked as if I'd appeared at the top of the path and then reappeared at bottom leaving a trail of bodies behind me.

"Bloody hell!" swore the female Hero "When did you learn to that?".

There were more important things to discuss right now.

"Where is Jack?" I asked Briar Rose

She soon answered me.

"He's been activating those spherical, patterned rocks" Briar informed me "I always thought they were damn ugly things. I don't want to die protecting them".

As she talked we headed over the focus sight and found that Jack of Blades had already turned it on.

"So, Maze couldn't hold you?" Jack noted "No matter. He wouldn't have seen the end of the day anyway. He had outlived his usefulness".

The bad guy had more to say.

"You're too late here" Jack informed me "This Site is active, but don't worry. I haven't finished with you yet".

He then vanished through a portal.

"Looks like he's done whatever he was doing" Briar muttered "but that portal's still open, let's follow him".

I let her go as I had already realised that chasing Jack was pointless. I was much better off going to the Guild and waiting for him to arrive. That way I wouldn't exhausted myself by fighting all his minions.

(Line Break)

Heroes Guild.

I could hear the screams and moans of dying people as soon as I teleported into the map room. Also I could feel the heat of the flames and feel the smoke as it filled my lungs. The Guild was burning.

While I stared at the burning Guild, memories came flooding back. Memories of Oakville burning, all the suffering caused by Jack. He had to be stopped.

I drew my sword and gripped the hilt tightly. I had become quite fond of my magical weapon, despite having never remembered its name. It was a good weapon and it had never failed me before. I just hoped it wouldn't fail me now.

As I headed for the Chamber I could see the bodies of guards and apprentices lying on the ground at odd angles. There wasn't a living soul in sight, even the Guild Master wasn't here, and he always here.

Then I did see him, and when I saw my old teacher move I raced over.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

It was the most stupid question I could have asked him, but it was all I could think of in the current situation.

He groaned in pain and I gently turned him around so I could see his face. He'd always been here, teaching and later advising me, and now he was lying on the ground while the Guild he'd run for so many years burned down around him. It was so unfair.

"I knew you'd come" The Guild Master said.

I didn't know what to say so I looked at the deep gash in his side; his clothes were stained with blood. Then I knew I couldn't tell him that everything was going to be alright. That wound was fatal, and he knew so as well. I could see it in his eyes.

"I tried to stop him" he was able to say "It all happened so quickly. I was in the library when I heard screaming so I was going to summon you. I tried to reach the map room so I could call you, but he was already..."

By now his whole body was shaking with the force of the coughs and I held him tighter, trying to soothe him, to calm him down. After a few more moments the coughs lessened in force and he was able to breathe again. Thankfully the smoke wasn't too bad in this part of the Guild, but it was only a matter of time before the fire spread here.

"Before I could even reach him he had flung me across the room with a blast of Will. I hit the wall and fell on the ground. He stabbed me before I could get up".

"Were there any others with Jack?" I asked quietly.

The old man nodded.

"Yes, a woman and a girl" he said

I nodded my head.

"My mother and sister" I mumbled.

"Avo help them…" my mentor muttered before he went into another coughing fit.

Something wet splattered on my glove and I turned my hand to see that it was covered blood.

Then the Guild Master started shaking hard and he was struggling for breath again. He didn't want to die, I could feel it. But deep down, I think he knew he didn't have a choice. He struggled for a couple of seconds more, then took one last, gurgling breath and suddenly went limp.

I gently laid him back on the floor. Then I stood up and looked at him one last time. Which was when I realised that I didn't even known his real name. Despite having known each other for years I really knew next to nothing about the man. I had no idea if had a family, or even just some friends I could contact.

There was only one thing I could do about his death, and that was to avenge him.

(Line Break)

The Chamber of Fate.

Inside the Chamber I found Theresa, who was trapped in another magical dome, and our mother who Jack had acting as a human shield.

"What a touching family reunion,' Jack said sarcastically "We have the mother, the daughter, the son, and the Sword. There's only one thing missing!"

Theresa screamed as Jack slit Scarlet's throat with a sword, and her death seemed to empower the blade, but I barely noticed that.

"Did seeing her die hurt you?" asked Jack.

Not really as Scarlet Robe wasn't anyone important to me. I had no memory of her as a child. I barely remembered my father either. Theresa I could recall somewhat, but the only family I really had was Whisper. Thankfully Jack hadn't understood that.

Besides I was becoming numb to it anyway. The place that had really been childhood home was burning up above, and nearly everyone I cared about was dead anyway. I didn't have much left to lose, and what was left I wanted to protect by killing Jack.

"Not really" I told the bad guy "Its just another reason to end you".

Rather than reply Jack swung his fancy new sword and a wave of blue energy hit me, and I was sent flying into the Chamber.

I forced myself to my feet, and I threw a fireball at Jack, but he used his weapon to deflect it harmlessly away.

"Is that the best you can do" Jack asked "Do you honestly think you can defeat me when not even Heroes like Maze could?".

Well I had beaten Maze.

"Surrender to me now and I promise you a quick and painless death" Jack offered.

It didn't take me long to reply.

"Go fuck yourself" I said.

Then I threw a bolt of lightening at the bad guy, only somehow it was absorbed into the sword.

"You foolish boy" Jack said.

The bad guy then swung the sword again and despite the shield I raised blue energy still hit me right in the chest and I went flying into a wall. This time it took me a few seconds to get back up onto my feet. I was somewhat glad I was wearing dark chainmail armour as it looked and helped keep me alive, but the downside was that it made heavier than normal.

"Had enough, have you?" Jack asked curiously.

I smiled, but there was no humour or warmth in it.

"Oh I'm just get started" I told the monster.

Jack seemed to blur and I knew he was using Assassin' Rush, or something like it, so I rolled backwards, barely missing being decapitated.

After getting to my feet I used Force Push to drive Jack backwards, but the abomination had power too so he was able to use a spell that matched mine. Which resulted in me struggling against an unseen force as I tried to drive the bad guy to his knees.

Then Jack brought fourth bolts of lightning. I caught the bolt in my free hand, span on the spot, and sent bolt back at Jack of Blades. It hit him and the monster in human form screamed, but what really mattered was that he dropped his weapon.

Before Jack could recover, I'd thrown my sword to the ground and was going for the Sword of Aeons, the thing from the Void, also tried to grab it which resulted in us both trying to remove the others hand from the hilt of the sword.

Changing tactics I hit Jack in the face and had been human I would have bloodied his nose. However being something that wasn't human I had to kick and punch, while still holding on the sword, the creature a few times before he stumbled to the ground.

"Give that back!" Jack roared.

Then the abomination somehow had a katana in his hands, and at the same time he created a force-field. Not that the barrier lasted for very long as one swing of fabled blade shattered the shield.

Jack tried to block my next blow with his katana, but the blade I used snapped his sword in two.

"Damn you!" howled.

Then Jack of Blades held his hands in the air and his body floated upwards. His body was now surrounded by this evil red glow, and vortex was forming nearby. I had no idea what he was trying to do, but I wasn't going to let him do it.

I jumped up and grabbed one of Jack's boots, and pulled him down. Jack hit the ground and I drove the Sword of Aeons into Jack's stolen body before the villain could do more than scream in despair.

(Line Break)

All that was left of Jack's body was a pile ashes and mask, which I felt compelled to pick up. I even dropped the very important sword so that I could hold the mask in both hands.

'Put me on I will grant you the powers of a god' a voice said into my mind.

It was a seductive tone the voice used, and it sounded like Jack. When I thought about putting the mask on I found my mind being filled with images.

I saw myself wearing the mask while ruling over all Albion as a king, no not as king, as nothing less than a deity. It was tempting, but knew this mask was like Sauron's One Ring, or something like that so with great mental effort I threw it into the vortex while listening to my sister urge me to do that.

The next thing to happen was something very painful. I had turned around, intending to check on my sister, only for her to drive Jack's magic sword into my chest.

"It is the oldest of all weapons. The Sword of Aeons was bloodforged long before the Old Kingdom. Once unlocked, its power is the power of all Albion" I heard Theresa say as the pain began to fade and the world around grew darker "William Black used the sword to defeat the three members of the Court, and ultimately free Albion. Only your blood is strong enough to fully unlock its powers".

I felt Theresa pull the sword out of me, and while it hurt, I stayed alive long enough to hear her speak some more.

"But it is an evil weapon" she said "So I will exchange it for a sword of equal power that is not so cursed, a weapon given through sacrifice. A sword you will one day use to defend all of Albion".

I would have replied, if I had been able.

"We'll met again" she promised.

My eyes closed and breathing simple stopped. I was able to hear my heart slow and then stop betting before I finally felt nothing at all. But I could still think, and in my last moments thought about Whisper and the child I would never see. I hoped that they would be okay.

(Line Break)

Chamber of Fate.

Theresa watched the vortex close and then looked at the sword that been given in exchange for the one Jack of Blades had wielded for such a short time.

Avo's Tear had once been the sword of a common guard until Solcius, the most powerful mage to ever live, used it as a focus point in a spell meant to close a vortex that had threatened to engulf Bowerstone. The sword disappeared soon afterwards and knowledge of it had soon become nothing more than legend. At least until Maze had started searching for it as a means to fight against Jack of Blades.

However Maze had failed to retrieve it because he was not deemed worthy of its power. Theresa wasn't either, and so would never wield the weapon, but one day a Hero would. Her brother would return, when he was needed the most, and he would wield a blade that was equal to that of The Sword of Aeons. Which was important as there were evil beings out there no normal weapon could slay.

Theresa knew that she had a lot of time to prepare for her brother's return, she still had much to learn, and there would be other things she needed to deal with, as well as plans to put in motion. However that could all wait for a while, for now she wanted to be alone. She needed to grieve for her dead family, and do that she needed to be alone.

She held Avo's Tear in her arms as if it was the child she would never have, then she teleported herself away leaving the guild to burn. It would be forgotten, and this chamber would be sealed until the day it was needed again.

Five centuries from now.

THE END


End file.
